Soul Brothers
by sakurademonalchemist
Summary: Harry and Ichigo had switched bodies when they were both children. Now Harry is learning to become a Soul Reaper while trying to survive the Tournament. Can he learn to master his powers before a secret about his past life makes things more complicated?
1. Chapter 1

_They were six when it began. For reasons unknown to this day, Ichigo Kurosaki, the son of a former Soul Reaper and Harry James Potter, the by now famous Boy-who-lived...switched bodies._

_It took all of a week to realize what had happened to Ichigo. And it took four years before the bizarre occurrence mysteriously reversed just as it had begun. But the connection between the two remained. Ichigo and Harry had permanently become linked._

_And Ichigo was helpless to help the boy he considered his twin brother._

* * *

Harry was in his fourth year of Hogwarts, and he _hated_ it. He would much rather be in Karakura's Mahou Gakuen with Ichigo. It baffled Hermione that he could speak perfect Japanese, yet his essays were so sloppy.

Alas, she didn't accept his excuse of his best friend in Japan teaching him through owl post. Even when he showed the girl his letters to Ichigo.

So in an effort to get her to drop his odd habit of speaking in Japanese at odd times or when he was really upset, he offered to teach her the language.

It did the trick. Fortunately the link between Ichigo and Harry was still strong enough that the orange haired boy corrected him before he taught Hermione.

Ron, in typical idiot creed, declined the lessons. Fred and George on the other hand, joined Hermione...if only to annoy Snape.

Then his year went to hell in a handbasket when his name was announced by Dumbledore.

Instead of following the instructions given to him by the old man, he did something that only the twins would expect after being introduced to Ichigo (Harry had decided to let the twins know about his own double since they had given him the Map).

He started swearing.

"Mr. Potter, you _will_ join the others," said Dumbledore, not very amused in the least.

Harry actually _glared_ at the headmaster.

"Like hell I will! I never entered my name in that damn goblet! Why the bloody hell should I suffer for the actions of others?"

Prolonged exposure to Ichigo over the years had lead to Harry overcoming his original belief that he was a freak. The Kurosaki clan had only sped up the transformation.

As it stood, whatever one of them learned, the other did too.

Which, much to Draco's complete horror, meant that Harry Potter was a black belt with no issue of breaking bones or noses if pushed too far.

Because of his outburst, it was very,very clear that Harry Potter wanted _nothing_ to do with the tournament he had been dragged into.

At least it was clear to everyone except a very jealous red head named Ronald Weasly.

Not two days into the tournament fever (with Harry arguing against preparing for the tasks on the grounds that he had not entered willingly) Ron dropped a bombshell.

He turned his back on Harry, claiming the raven-haired boy deliberately entered for the glory, despite his clear protests against his involvement. Harry, once he got over the initial shock of Ron's betrayal, decided to do some damage control without the redhead to mess him up.

* * *

"Come to gloat Potter?" sneered Draco.

"No. I came here to offer a truce. You leave Hermione's and me alone, and I will give you new material to piss off Ronald provided you leave the other Weasly's alone."

Draco did something very unbecoming of a Malfoy. He gaped with his mouth open in shock.

Potter was willing to give him ammo against the one Weasly he truly hated? How could he refuse those terms?

"Very Slytherin of you Potter," said Draco, shaking the boy's hand.

Harry had a smirk on his face as he said.

"Hat's first choice."

"Hmm?" said Draco, not getting the odd remark at first.

"The hat's first choice _was_ Slytherin. I choose to go to Gryffindor instead. Consider me a Snake in the Lion's den."

For the second time that day, Harry Potter did the impossible. He left Draco Malfoy gobsmacked in shock.

Harry left the corridor feeling much better about his year.

* * *

Ron had an unpleasant premonition about his year. Like something was really going to ruin the next three years for him.

This feeling was proven accurate when Draco bloody Malfoy waltzed up to him with a cheshire sized smirk.

And then things went completely downhill from there as Draco mocked him for things he shouldn't possibly know, like the mole in a place he definitely had never shown in public.

Somehow, he _knew _that Harry was to blame for this as Draco out hexed him all the way to the hospital wing.

* * *

Things were starting to change in Hogwarts...but no one could pin the reason. Slytherins and Gryffindors had cut down on the hexes in the corridors. Hufflepuffs were slowly trying to mend the broken respect towards the Lions after Harry very publicly gave any points he earned to the Puffs. Which meant that Hufflepuff would definitely win the house cup that year.

Only Ravenclaw seemed to remain the same.

Dumbledore didn't know how to handle this situation. It was clear to everyone that something was very wrong.

He knew it was all centered around the fourth champion.

There was only one problem with Harry.

There was something attached to his soul. He originally thought it was Voldemort...but the first (and for some strange reason _only_) time he used legilmency on the boy-who-lived, he was thrown violently out by something.

And it wasn't the soul fragment he knew the boy had in his scar. Or the boy himself.

It was something else.

Snape, after his first encounter with the boy in Potions, reported the same phenomena. Only his scan revealed a link that neither of them had known was there.

One that was most definitely _not_ Voldemort in any way, shape or form.

He could only think of one option to fix this mess.

He had to sever the link.

* * *

Upon hearing about the mess he found himself in this year, Isshin called in a favor from an old friend...who turned out to be a talking cat.

Yoruichi agreed to teach Isshin's son in England.

And found the boy rather quickly. Like Isshin's biological son Ichigo, Harry had spirit energy flowing out of him in waves. Unlike Ichigo, Harry had begun to control it, though she doubted the boy did it intentionally.

She waited until the boy was alone, relatively speaking.

Harry sat up with a start. There was something on his bed. And for once it wasn't Dobby.

He almost thought it was Sirius...except it was far too small to be his godfather.

He reached for his glasses.

And found a stereotypical black cat on his legs.

"Oh what now?" groaned Harry.

The cat was amused.

"_Is that anyway to speak about your new instructor?"_

Harry stared for about four seconds before he said "Who sent you?"

"_Kurosaki Isshin."_

Harry popped his neck and said "Right. So where are we going, and how are you going to keep the alarm from being raised if someone realizes I'm gone?"

The cat quirked an eyebrow.

"_Why are you not more shocked?"_

Harry grinned evilly. He made a show of looking around.

"Where are we, Neko-san?"

"_A school. Why?"_

"A school of what, Neko-san?"

It dawned on her what he was getting at.

"_Ah. I see your point."_

"Let me guess. You can turn into a human too, can't you?"

"_Actually, yes. Shall we go? I had an old friend of mine build a time stop that I could move."_

"What are we waiting for then?"

Harry watched in amusement as the cat laid a doppelganger in his bed. He knew of time stops. They were supposed to be illegal...but only to an extent.

It wasn't illegal to own or create one. It was just illegal to use it in proximity of another within a five hundred kilometer radius. Luckily for them, very few people had the power or know how on how to create them, let alone use them these days.

* * *

Harry entered the swirling vortex without hesitation.

The cat, who's name turned out to be Yoruichi, swiftly outlined what they would be doing until a day before the time stop's limit was reached.

Essentially she (and Harry wasn't fooled for a minute by her masculine voice) was going to turn him into what was known as a Shinigami, or Soul Reaper.

Harry blushed fiercely when she transformed into a human...with no clothes. To her utter amusement, he didn't even try to look away. She poked him once, and he blinked, twice.

"What's the matter boya? _Cat_ got your tongue?"

Harry, to his credit, didn't stammer.

"No, just wasn't expecting a black cat of all things to turn into a beautiful woman in her prime."

Yoruichi grinned fiercely. She was liking this kid even more!

Fortunately for Harry, Yoruichi at least put some clothes on before she even considered training him.

Her first lesson? Increasing his spiritual energy enough to handle manifesting his sword.

So she literally knocked the soul out of him. And found an unexpected surprise.

He wasn't fully tied to his body by the Chain of Fate. There was some bizarre baby thing tying his soul to his body. It gave her the chills just looking at it. It felt wrong on so many levels she couldn't describe it accurately enough.

She shook her head. It would be separated from her new student soon enough.

"First lesson is simple enough. Don't get hit by my attacks. When you can move as freely as you did in your own body, then we'll move on."

"This chain won't tangle me up will it?"

"I haven't heard of anyone getting tangled by one, so I assume not."

"Good. I've always wanted to try a few things, but my body never cooperated with me."

Yoruichi grinned at him.

"Warm up if you like. We begin in forty minutes."

"Arigatou, Yoruichi-sensei!"

She watched as he did basic warm-ups. While he was pretty good at hand to hand, it was obvious he was lacking a decent partner to hone his skills.

Once he popped his back, she smirked. The best way to do this was a surprise attack.

Harry had very good reflexes for someone unused to fighting. He sensed she was there a fraction of a second before her foot caved his skull in.

Her smirk widened. Now that his spirit pressure was up, she would help him in his hand-to-hand.

"What do you say to an all out sparring session before we move on?"

Harry was grinning now too. He always craved a proper sparring session. Shadow boxing simply wasn't cutting it.

For the next ten hours, Harry and Yoruichi fought. She was pleased with the progress he made in a short time. Even if the kid had relatively poor stamina.

Finally, Harry fell to the ground, worn out.

"You did good, boya. I think you can handle lesson two with little problem."

Harry groaned.

Yoruichi laughed at him.

"If it makes you feel any better, we can wait on lesson three until tomorrow."

"DONE!"

"Our next lesson...begins now!"

Yoruichi used her favorite technique to destroy the chain connecting the warped soul to Harry.

Something in the flash of light that followed screamed in such a manner that it haunted her. The light had been blinding!

When the smoke cleared and she could see again, her jaw dropped.

It looked like she wouldn't need the Shattered Shaft after all.

Harry stood before her proudly, his new sword and outfit announcing the change. He was no longer an ordinary wizard with borrowed spirit powers. He...was a soul reaper.

"Well that certainly is a surprise. I was sure I would have to drop you down a certain hole before you could manifest those powers."

Both turned when they heard a roar.

Yoruichi cursed. The corrupted soul had become a twisted snake like hollow!

"Is that...the thing attached to my soul?"

"Yeah. It kept you alive from what I could tell."

"So...I really died thirteen years ago?"

"We can talk about that later. Right now your first job is to kill that damn thing. Cut the mask in two, and it will be destroyed."

"That's it?"

"That's all you need to kill a hollow, even one as twisted as this one."

Harry went after the thing with a vengeance. It took him a bit to get the hang of the sword, but once he did, he cleaved it's mask into two neat pieces that faded into nothing.

"Not bad, boya."

"I hate those things. Talk about a pain in the arse."

"Agreed. Do you want to continue to lesson three, or wait until tomorrow when you've recovered?"

"Tomorrow. How shall we spend the next four days in here?"

She grinned.

"How would you like to learn a trick called 'Flash Step'?"

"Sounds like fun!"

It took Harry right up to the point where Yoruichi told him the time stop was about to break to get the hang of Flash Step.

Since Yoruichi was very interested in magic, Harry had the brilliant idea of having her play the part of a pet cat. With full permission to bite anyone stupid enough to mock the fact that he now had a black cat.

This amused her so much that those who still hated him now gave him a much wider berth.

The next night (after learning to his horror that they would be facing dragons thanks to Hagrid) Harry joined Yoruichi in the time stop again.

Tonight they were learning Shikai...the first release of his new soul slayer.

* * *

_Harry found himself in the most bizarre and twisted place he had ever seen. It looked like an upturned toy box, and the ground was covered in at least six inches of water in all directions._

_And sitting precariously on a house that had been sheared in half, was a cat person. Two long arms ended in sharp looking claws. He (and Harry just KNEW it was a he) had a single red eye that stared at him. Two long scarf like things flowed from his back and had large bells at the end. _

_Around his neck was a ribbon with a gold bell._

"_Who are you?" demanded the cat._

"_I'm Harry. What's your name?"_

_The cat went to reply, but paused. A large white rabbit doll hovered by Harry's ear._

Who is this?_ It giggled._

_Harry slowly turned._

"_My name is Harry. What is yours?"_

I'm Alyss.

_Somehow, he knew this Alyss was a rather lonely person._

"_Would you like to play?" asked Harry._

_The insane grin that had formed on the rabbit vanished as quickly as it had appeared._

_For what felt like days, Harry played with the girl in white and the cat spirit. _

_When he finally went to leave, the cat spirit bound up to him._

"_My name is the **Cheshire Neko**. You may use me in battle...for now."_

"_I hope the three of us become friends, Cheshire."_

Harry's emerald green eyes sprang open. Yoruichi waited patiently for him to release the sword.

Harry grinned as he cried out _"Claw apart the boundaries, Cheshire Neko!"_

His sword became a pair of claws.

For the rest of the time in the dimension, Harry practiced with his Shikai. Much to her amusement, Harry was an assassin-type wielder. His power revolved around vanishing completely and reappearing without a sound.

"You know if Isshin hadn't told me that he was adopting you, I would have taken you under my wing."

"Can I still call you Yoruichi-nee-chan?"

"I can live with that. Now, to perform Shunko..."

* * *

Harry crept in the halls. He had gotten an alarm earlier through Dobby that someone was about to wake him. There was only one problem with that.

He wasn't in his body at the moment.

Even _with_ shun po, it was highly unlikely that he would make it in time.

"_Why don't you take a shortcut through the Abyss? Alyss likes you enough that she won't warp time that much."_

Harry blinked, then looked at his sword.

"And how the hell do I do that?"

Cheshire purred...and the air in front of him split open. He trusted his sword enough that he went through.

And popped out in his dorm.

Right as Neville was about to 'wake' him up.

Harry jolted.

Neville looked at him oddly.

"You alright Harry? You didn't hear me calling you. It looked like you weren't breathing for a minute there."

"It's fine Nev. I just have sleep apnea."

"What?"

"It's a condition that makes you temporarily stop breathing in your sleep."

"Oh. Okay. Night Harry."

"Nite Nev."

He breathed a silent sigh of relief. He knew that eventually someone would notice he wasn't breathing...which was why he had asked Madam Pomphrey about sleep disorders that disrupted normal sleeping patterns.

He had no idea that Percy had suffered from the same problem.

Harry went to sleep, and let the new information sink in.

Cheshire, his sword, had the strangest ability to disappear and reappear without warning. Every time Harry used that power, he learned more about it. So long as he had a destination in mind, he could leave England and never come back.

He was about to fall asleep when he heard giggling. He opened his eyes to see Alyss' rabbit avatar above him.

"_Hey, Harry...can I come play with you in your world?"_

Harry smiled. He had an idea about that.

"Maybe. But I don't know if letting you out of your room is a good idea just yet. How would you like to see this world through the doll?"

Alyss giggled again, and the 'doll' cocked it's head.

"_Why can't I come out?"_

"The old man in this castle would try to hurt you if you appeared. Can you wait a little longer until we leave this island?"

"_But I want to play with you!"_

"Alyss, can you shrink that doll enough that I could carry you like a key chain? Then you can see this place without people becoming frightened."

Alyss turned the doll into a small one that could fit into Harry's hand.

The next morning Harry could be seen with a new charm on his bag...


	2. Chapter 2

Harry stood before the crowd. To his surprise, he could be seen while in soul form simply by using a little magic on himself.

Fortunately he had found a great place to hide his body. The last thing he needed was for people to ask some really uncomfortable questions about _why_ he could leave his body at will.

Yoruichi promised to stand guard over it, so no one would remember finding the 'dead' body of Harry Potter.

Harry disguised his shihakusho with a simple charm, and no one could tell it wasn't the Champion uniform.

Hermione wished him luck, and Harry waited anxiously for his turn. Finally, the cannon boomed for the fourth time. He stepped out carefully, keeping his eyes wide open for the dragon.

Harry paid no attention to the judges or the crowd. He was keeping all his attention on finding and avoiding the dragon.

Suddenly he heard a roar. He did a duck-and-roll and avoided the cone of flames. The dragon kept up the barrage, and Harry managed to shun po onto a rock out of the way. He didn't hear the crowd's gasp of surprise at the trick.

Then he spotted the target. It was a golden egg in the middle of an actual nest.

He used all of his dexterity to flip and jump out of the way of the dragon's tail and claws. Yoruichi had been more than happy to teach him a few tricks that took advantage of his limber body. Ichigo could never pull off half the things he did at that moment.

Finally Harry's hands closed in on the gold egg, and he ran like hell. He was very good at free running, which meant the uneven slope of the arena made little difference to him.

When he reached the tent where the others had gone to, he finally paid attention to the crowd. It was going wild.

Hermione came in with a look of complete disbelief on her face.

"You got a perfect score! Even the Durmstrang headmaster gave you a ten!"

Harry, much to his shock, had out down everyone else.

Krum had smashed some of the eggs, Fluer had nearly gotten roasted when her distraction didn't work and Cedric had the second highest score. All three of them were looking at him with something akin to surprise.

"What?"

"Harry, how did you learn to move like that?" Cedric finally asked.

Fluer was waiting for his answer. She had approved of his graceful movements and quick reactions. The fact that he had used almost no magic to get the egg had impressed her.

Krum was impressed that unlike the majority of European wizards, Harry at least made a serious attempt to stay in shape.

"I've always loved rhythmic gymnastics. So most days I would find a quiet spot to practice a few simple moves. I took up free running to keep my skills at running in top shape."

"What about that trick you pulled to get on that rock? What was that?" asked Fluer.

"Flash step. Someone who knew how to do it taught me. Said it would make it harder for the dragons to roast me alive."

Harry refused to name his mysterious teacher, but waited with them patiently for the results. Hermione had been telling the truth about him having a perfect score.

The party was enormous. But the highlight of Harry's day was when Ron tried to slink up to his former best friend. The twins watched warily at how Harry would react to Ron's attempts to mend what was broken.

Harry did not speak. He was surprised that the red head dared to come near him after what he pulled.

Harry was not oblivious. He was not thick headed. He did not miss the little things.

Ron was the worst sort of friend one could have. He did have his moments, where he proved that he wasn't a waste of space. But they were so few and far between.

Ron refused to listen to reason. He always judged people based on other's opinions. He never tried to see beneath the false persona that most people placed to protect themselves. He didn't even try to remain on Harry's side when he needed him the most. When the whole castle turned on him in an instant for something he wanted no part of.

And Ron had claimed that Harry was after the glory and the money.

Harry had wondered at that moment if this was how Sirius and his father had felt the moment they realized the depth of Peter's betrayal.

Ron waited for Harry's reaction.

Harry took a deep breath. And then verbally lit into the boy. If there was one thing he despised more than bullies, it was betrayal. When he was done, Ron said nothing.

He knew that he had crossed a line, and there was no way he could go back to the way things were.

* * *

The next morning, there was a pronounced change in the Gryffindor table.

Ronald Weasly had become an outcast in his own house. Even though people were beginning to believe Harry in his claims that he never actually entered his name, no one was willing to trust Ron just yet.

Even Gryffindors had standards.

Harry was very annoyed to learn that the points he earned in the task had been given to Gryffindor when he specifically told them to go to Hufflepuff.

Which was why, when he learned of the mistake, he went up to McGonagall and asked her politely (but firmly) to give the points to Hufflepuff.

Her shocked looked was only matched by Sprout.

"I did not ask to be in this competition. Can you please give the points to the champion who deserves them?"

"Mr. Potter..."

"If you are going to tell me it can't be done, then I guarantee that I will help the twins prank this entire school and _have_ them deducted," said Harry.

McGonagall didn't doubt his threat. Harry was the son, godson and cub of the worst pranksters in the history of the school. The odds of him completely causing havoc through pranks...

She shuddered at the very thought of him teaming up with the twins.

"Very well. I shall see to it that the mistake is corrected."

"Thank you, Professor McGonagall."

* * *

By evening over fifty points had been mysteriously transferred from Gryffindor to Hufflepuff.

At first the lions grumbled about it, but Harry managed to plead his case before they lynched him.

"While I earned those points fairly, I don't think we should win because some idiot put my name in that damn cup. If we win the house cup, then we should do it the same way we always have. Beating the Ravenclaws and Slytherins."

That made the twins laugh. Harry was the same as always. Unlike Ron, the twins knew Harry better than he did.

They knew that Harry placed loyalty and trust above all other qualities. It baffled them that he had been placed in Gryffindor and not Hufflepuff.

* * *

Yoruichi was with Harry again in the time stop. So far no one had caught onto the fact that Harry had developed new skills practically overnight.

Harry worked alongside his sword in order to get to and from the time stop. He wasn't going to chance someone realizing that he wasn't breathing. (Though Neville had unwittingly mentioned the sleep disorder to Hermione, and from there the rumor spread that Harry had difficulty sleeping at night.)

At least it gave him a good five minutes to reach the tower before someone realized something was very off about him.

Right now Yoruichi was teaching him the basics of Kido. So far he could do up to thirteen of them. But his aim was very shoddy with it.

As Harry left for the night, Yoruichi mused on something.

_'If I didn't know any better, I would swear that boy was a born soul reaper. But the only one I know of that is still alive is the Kurosaki boy. This bears investigating.'_

The next night Yoruichi told him that she would be going somewhere for a while. He was to practice with Cheshire on his own. Harry had more or less figured out how to use the time stop on his own. He could be trusted to train without going overboard.

Harry was excited to learn more about Cheshire and Alyss. This gave him a chance to ask so many questions without worrying how Yoruichi would react.

(Frankly Alyss worried the hell out of Yoruichi, but the former Soul Reaper was willing to give the girl a chance.)

* * *

Yoruichi found her way into the Soul Society easy enough. She had some research to do.

Four days into the search, and what she found bothered her. There were no records of shinigami births (strangely enough, the soul society _does_ keep tabs on Soul Reapers who gave up their sword to live as humans and their children) aside from the Kurosaki family in Karakura.

It had taken her several hours and fifty well placed search inquiries to find the damn file to begin with.

So she looked up something else.

A list of all Soul Reapers or those with enough power to be classed as one who had gone missing.

All but one had been labeled as dead. A single soul was still unaccounted for by the soul society.

A soul with a silver and gold symbol next to it.

There were four Noble Families in the soul society. But above them was the Royal family. And their symbol was very distinct.

The fact that the soul had yet to turn up mean that someone somewhere had been gifted with the soul of the royal family. And if the soul society ever found out _where_ that soul was...

It would be chaos. The Royal family had been searching for centuries for the heir to the throne. No one could figure out how the boy had been misplaced, or why it hadn't shown up yet.

'_Impossible. There is little chance that Harry is the missing Heir. Perhaps he gained his powers through his bond with Ichigo.'_

Yoruichi returned to England to find the castle in chaos. It was clear that it had been hit with a rash of pranks since she had been gone.

Harry was currently hiding with the twins in the time stop. But unlike the previous times, time was moving outside the sphere.

"Mind telling me what happened, boya?" she asked, amused.

Fred and George didn't react to the fact that a cat was talking. (Harry had introduced them to Alyss earlier, so they were pretty much immune to that trick. He did not however, share the fact that she was an adult woman who often transformed without clothes on.)

"Dumbledore."

"What about the old goat?" said Yoruichi.

Harry and the twins couldn't meet her gaze.

"What did he do?" she repeated.

"He...he tried to sever the link between me and Ichigo."

Yoruichi stared.

The twins said nothing, but the mere fact that Harry had brought them to the time stop said enough. It was obvious who had rescued him from Dumbledore.

"Well I suppose we shall have to make arrangements for you to leave England once this year is over. He can't be trusted with your well being any longer."

"What about the times you aren't around and the twins are in class?" asked Harry.

"You do have a defender with you at all times do you not?"

Harry's eyes widened.

"But how is Cheshire going to help me when he can't come out unless I am in soul form?"

Suddenly all four of them heard an insane laugh. Alyss appeared in her human form.

"_I can lend you Cheshire Harry."_

"Alyss?"

"Wait, is this the insane rabbit doll you always carry around?" said Fred in surprise.

"Harry, you never told us you had such a cute girlfriend!" said George.

Harry blushed, but wisely said nothing. If he denied that Alyss was his girlfriend she would get mad, but it would also confirm it in the eyes of the twins.

Yoruichi wasn't really a fan of Alyss, but she had never once tried to harm Harry. Quite the opposite in fact. She tried to protect him whenever she thought Yoruichi was trying to kill her friend.

Then again, Alyss wasn't human. Yoruichi had spent an entire day trying to find her...only to have to break into the Research and Development labs for the files.

Alyss was also known as the Will of the Abyss. A dark and mysterious realm where the Soul Reapers had no footing. If a human was dragged into it, then they would become Chains, not hollows or souls.

So long as Alyss kept her control over the Chains, the soul society left her alone.

"And how do you intend to lend Cheshire to Harry?" asked Yoruichi.

"_I can bind them together. Cheshire is one of my chains."_

Yoruichi had suspected as much. She had never heard of a soul sword being able to move between dimensions before. A Chain on the other hand, explained it.

"He isn't going to be dragged into the Abyss is he?"

Alyss smiled.

"_Not if he visits me often he won't."_

"That's easy enough to do. Alyss is fun to hang out with."

A blood red seal came under Harry. Some of Cheshire's blood was placed in the sword itself, so no seal could be seen on him.

Once it was gone, Cheshire jumped onto Harry's shoulder and stayed there. He wasn't bound to Harry's soul anymore. Now he could partially manifest in the physical world too.

Alyss decided she was tired of hiding in the Abyss. So Yoruichi convinced a friend of her to give the girl a gigai. Alyss used it to infiltrate the Slytherin dorms.

Thanks to the special properties of the gigai, no one could tell that she didn't belong. They assumed she had always been there.

No one actually talked to her, because as far as they knew she was a total loner.

They knew she was a pure-blood with a cat, though if pressed no one could name what family she came from or what her grades were. All they could really say about the girl was that her name was Alyss and she was a Slytherin fourth year.

Only Draco knew that she didn't belong. But instead of confronting the silent girl, he went straight to the one person who could answer him straightly.

He went to Harry.

* * *

"Huh, so you noticed?"

"Of course I noticed. I am most likely the only pure-blood in Slytherin who can name every neutral and dark pure blood family. And I know for a fact that there are none with a fourteen year old daughter with the name of Alyss."

Harry gave him a rather disturbing grin.

"You are right of course. She isn't from any current families, but she _is_ a pure-blood."

"Who the hell is she?"

"Honestly? A being from a realm ruled by madness. Her other name is the Will of the Abyss."

Draco paled. He had read tales of that dark realm before, and very little of it was good.

"What the hell is _she_ doing here?" he nearly shrieked.

"Protecting me from Dumbledore. Kinda hard to do that when she was masquerading as a white rabbit key chain on my bag," said Harry with a shrug.

Draco felt like pulling out his hair. A dark creature who ruled a nightmarish realm was in Hogwarts protecting the boy-who-lived, and lived in the Slytherin house.

When the Dark Lord returned, he was so screwed.

* * *

Dumbledore frowned at the slip of paper. When he had asked the goblet to provide the name of the Champion's precious person, he had gotten a name he didn't expect.

Harry's precious person was either this Ichigo or Alyss.

Upon further investigation, he learned that there was a girl in Slytherin with a name of Alyss. While the fact that the person chosen was a Slytherin bothered him more than he wanted to admit, he still prepared to use her for the second task.

* * *

When Yoruichi learned that Harry had no idea how to swim, she decided to teach him. Fortunately the hot spring lead into a small lake in the time stop (though she secretly added it so she could sunbathe when she felt like it).

During one of their lessons (it was three weeks away from the second task) Yoruichi accidentally knocked over the stupid egg that Harry nearly got roasted over.

It fell into the water where the clasp that held it shut opened. At first Harry was quite glad that he didn't hear the awful shrieking sound it created...until the two of them paused in complete confusion.

"Is that...singing?" asked Harry.

"Sure sounds like it. But there isn't anyone else here."

The singing seemed to be coming from the lake of all things. Finally Yoruichi decided to just stick her head underwater to figure out the cause.

She came up in disbelief.

"It's that damn egg!"

"Huh?"

Harry stuck his head under, and heard the song clearly.

"So the second task will involve swimming in the lake to retrieve something?"

"And mermaids, possibly. They're one of the few creatures that can speak underwater, and from what I heard there is a colony in the lake."

"Great...so I have to learn how to swim and hold my breath underwater for an hour."

Yoruichi had an idea about that.

"Why not ask Neville? That poor boy might have an idea of what you can use."

"What?"

"I've noticed that he tends to spend a lot of time reading books from the library, but no one ever spends longer than fifteen minutes talking to him. Maybe he might have an idea?"

Harry thought back to his few conversations with the boy, and conceded her point.

Perhaps Neville would be a better friend than Ron.


	3. Chapter 3

Neville, as it turned out, did know something that could help Harry. A rather disturbing plant known as Gillyweed.

Since Harry really didn't want to even attempt stealing from Snape a second time (though to be fair Hermione was the one to do it), he decided to ask Sirius.

Sirius surprised him by sending an entire jar of the stuff, over half full.

Harry gave a few to Neville to experiment with. After that Harry made a point to talk more to Neville, even including him in his study sessions with Hermione.

Much to the shock of the misplaced Gryffindor, Neville had the third best grades in their house. (Hermione was first, followed very closely by Harry himself.) It was only because he had to use his father's old wand that he had become known as a weakling.

So Harry sent a discreet letter to Augusta Longbottom (Neville's intimidating grandmother) explaining the situation without embarrassing the boy.

Horrified that Neville was considered weak in his house because he had a wand that didn't suit him, she flooed to the school and forced the Headmaster to let Neville go to Diagon to correct the matter.

The fact that the two other headmasters happened to be in the office at the time didn't hurt her case either.

Within a week of getting a new wand, Neville's standing in Gryffindor shifted overnight. From being the second-weakest (Ron was the weakest in Gryffindor) in the house to being the second-strongest. Only Harry was better than him.

It was with some shock that everyone realized how mistaken they were about the timid boy.

Who was slowly becoming more social. Since Harry (and Hermione when she realized what was going on) had included him in their group, Neville quickly gained some new friends. Friends who didn't judge him based on his family's standing or his previous status as a weakling.

Neville seemed surprised that he now had friends who trusted him to know what he was doing and to help when it was needed.

He rather liked the feeling.

* * *

Harry spotted Draco and asked "Have you seen Alyss? She hasn't shown up for a while now."

"Not since last night."

The minute Alyss learned that Draco knew who she was, she offered to give him his own Chain. Draco wasn't going to accept the offer just yet, but she was willing to wait. Alyss didn't mind Draco that much.

Harry waited anxiously for the start of the blasted task. He had two gillyweeds ready to be used, but he wasn't looking forward to it.

Suddenly the second task began. Since Harry had the best score, he jumped in first.

The moment before he went into the water, he swallowed the plant. And grimaced at the taste.

Fortunately the gills took effect seconds after he entered the water. He kicked, and his feet propelled him downwards.

He knew the colony had to be somewhere in the center of the lake, so he headed straight. He avoided the seaweed on the bottom (and noticed that Fluer was attacked by grindylows when she got too close).

Something with a lot of teeth closed in on him. Harry was startled to see a misshapen Viktor Krum passing him.

When he finally reached the colony, he ignored the mermaids. He found Alyss tied to a pole in the middle.

So he took the knife he had brought along (it was the one he mostly used in potions class) and started sawing. Then he went to work on the girl who looked a lot like Fluer. Possibly her younger sibling.

The Mermaid chief went to stop him.

"_Only one hostage per champion!"_

Harry made a pointed look towards Alyss. The chief understood without words.

If he continued to bother Harry, he would have to deal with an irate Alyss. Unlike the students and teachers of Hogwarts, the creatures recognized her on instinct as a dangerous being.

Harry grabbed the other girl and started slowly swimming his way to the surface.

He couldn't reach the other gillyweed, and he could feel the first one wearing off, and fast. He kicked harder than before.

Right as it was about to completely wear off, he reached the surface.

The three of them gasped for air. The little girl and Alyss both started to swim to the platform.

Harry had reached the hostages before Cedric _or_ Krum, and Fluer was shivering on the platform upset. When she saw the little girl, she nearly sobbed with relief.

Harry waited until the girls were out of the water before climbing out. His limbs felt heavy, so it took him a moment.

His teeth chattered from the cold.

"Mr. Potter, why did you save the hostage of another champion?" asked Karkaroff.

Harry stared at the man incredulous.

"Have you felt the temperature of the lake recently? It's freezing down there!" he said, his teeth still chattering.

Fluer gave him a large hug and a kiss on the cheek. Apparently the little girl was in fact her younger sister Gabrielle.

Alyss glared slightly at Fluer but said nothing.

Neville seemed relieved that the gillyweed worked.

* * *

When Harry found out that there was going to be a ball on Christmas, he had only one thought about the matter.

He was not sticking around for Christmas this year.

It took one letter to the goblins to get a passport and a card. He was so visiting the Kurosaki clan this year. It wasn't until the holiday was almost upon them that McGonagall finally spoke to him about the fact that he hadn't put his name down.

"I received an invitation to visit my friend in Japan, and I plan to take him up on it. They are preparing for my visit, and it would be rude to not go."

While she couldn't debate that, she wasn't too happy.

"Look, I already have my passport, and I fully intend to go. Besides, I'll return after the holidays."

By the time McGonagall decided to alert Dumbledore, Harry was long since on the train to London with Alyss. Neville was staying, having asked Luna to the ball. Hermione was going with Krum, last Harry heard. He wished her good luck.

* * *

Harry headed to Gringotts with Yoruichi. She was the one who alerted him to a problem with the Kurosaki's bid to adopt him.

Griphook refused to tell her _what _the issue was.

Harry sat down in Griphook's office, and waited for the goblin to begin. Since Harry always treated the goblins as equals whenever he saw them, they generally got along with him just fine.

"Welcome, Lord Potter."

"Greetings, Griphook," replied Harry.

"So what exactly is the problem with Isshin's attempts to adopt Harry?"

"Simply put, he is unable to. Two years after the Dark Lord was taken out, Dumbledore convinced the Wizangamot to pass a law that stated heirs to pure-blood houses would not be allowed to be adopted by anything less than a half-blood from a noble line. Unfortunately, while the Kurosaki clan is from a pure-blood line by Japanese standards, they are not from a noble line."

Yoruichi looked amused.

"The main problem is the _nobility_ of the line, correct?"

"Yes."

"Then there shouldn't be any issues with _me_ adopting Harry now is there?"

Griphook stared.

"I am Yoruichi Shihouin, head of one of the four great Noble houses in the Seireitei. Would that be enough?"

"We would need a blood test to verify your claim, but that would be enough to get around the law," said Griphook calmly.

Less than an hour later, Harry was in a very good mood. Not only had the adoption gone through (without a hitch, since he was more than willing to give up a few hundred galleons) but now he wouldn't have to suffer the Dursleys again!

Since Yoruichi was officially his adoptive mother (not that he didn't already think of her as such) he decided to change his name. It wouldn't go through officially until a day before the tournament ended.

It was a rather effective method to keep Dumbledore from realizing his pawn had escaped his control.

Yoruichi decided to sit with Harry in the first class. They had done a small rock paper scissors game to see who would get the window seat.

Yoruichi cheated and got the seat. But to Harry's immense amusement, something in the airline food didn't agree with her, and she had to suffer with the rather long line to the loo. And having to climb over her new son.

Since Dumbledore had tried to break Harry's bond with Ichigo, Harry essentially closed off most communication aside from owl post. He didn't want the old man to somehow go through him to Ichigo.

Which is why he had to rely on Yoruichi on directions to the small clinic in Karakura.

* * *

Karin was about to exit the clinic when she saw the messy black haired boy with a cat on his shoulder.

When he saw her, he grinned.

"Is Kurosaki Ichigo in? Or should I toss something at his window?"

"Ichigo! Someone's here to see you!" Karin yelled.

When Ichigo saw the familiar head of raven black hair and emerald eyes, he stopped cold. His jaw actually dropped in disbelief.

Harry grinned wider.

"What? Not going to give your surrogate brother a hug, Ichigo?"

"Harry? Is that really you?"

Harry mock thought about that.

"Hmm... orange hair, brown eyes, and a surly disposition. I think you're Ichigo Kurosaki of Karakura."

Much to the shock of Ichigo's family, he tackled Harry in a hug.

"Oof!"

Isshin Kurosaki was rather startled by the sudden change in behavior in his oldest child.

"Ichigo, who is this?"

"The same idiot he switched places with for four years, before it wore off without explanation," answered Harry with a laugh.

"Why didn't you tell me you were coming?"

"And ruin my surprise? I had to see the poleaxed expression when you realized I actually managed to get here!" laughed Harry.

Ichigo was actually grinning. Once Karin and Yuzu finally got exactly _who_ was at their doorstep, they had to invite him in. Harry let loose a breath he didn't realize he had been holding.

While the Weasly clan had been and always was his first wizard family, the Kurosaki clan was something he had always craved.

Home. They knew him before the whole boy-who-lived nonsense took over. They accepted him for all his faults. Whereas Molly Weasly always treated him like a glass doll that needed to be coddled and fed until he was a big as his own cousin.

Which was why Harry fully intended to actually _enjoy_ his Christmas holidays.

* * *

Ichigo sat on his bed, taking in the fact that he could actually _touch_ his surrogate twin brother. Harry was sitting on the chair with a grin that had yet to leave his face since his surprise fully took effect.

"So how long you staying?"

"Until the holidays are over. And once this whole tournament farce is over, I intend to move here."

"Dad intends to adopt you, you know."

Harry's expression changed for the first time since arriving. He looked...sheepish?

"About that..."

"What?" asked Ichigo with suspicion.

"The old goat managed to get this stupid arse rule in place a few years after I supposedly took out the Dark Wanker. According to the goblins I can't be adopted by anything less than a half-blood from a noble clan."

"And since we don't rank as Noble pure-bloods to the Japanese Ministry, we don't count. Damn that old man! He keeps trying to ruin everything!"

"He also tried to sever our connection. That's why I haven't done more than owl you for the past three months."

"How did you escape?"

"Terror twins," shrugged Harry.

"So what now?"

"I already took care of the adoption issue. Remember that weird cat that taught me things I could do with our spirit powers?"

"Yoruichi, if I remember right. What about it?"

"Animagus from a noble line."

"That cat adopted you?" said Ichigo, sputtering. Harry had the strangest luck he had ever seen.

"The cat adopted me. And as far as Yoruichi is concerned, I can live wherever I damn well please, so long as the family is aware of things like spirits and the like."

Ichigo let the implications of that sink in for a moment before he said "So that means...!"

"Expect me once this stupid school year is over. There's no way in hell I am sticking around if I don't have to. Dumbledore doesn't have a say in it."

An idea struck him, and a mischievous smirk made it's way to his face.

"Think Karin and Yuzu would like to have a dog around to protect them?"

Ichigo grinned.

"Padfoot?"

"Exactly. At the very least he can shut Isshin up with a silencer."

Ichigo cackled.

* * *

Harry, or as he insisted to lessen the chances of people realizing that he was _the_ Harry Potter, Yoru joined the Kurosaki clan to their yearly temple visit for Christmas.

He rather enjoyed this quiet celebration opposed to the chaos of Hogwarts.

To his surprise, the Kurosaki clan had started to celebrate a more Western Christmas* since Ichigo somehow swapped bodies with Harry all those years ago.

By the time they all went to bed, Harry was all grins. They had set up a temporary futon in Ichigo's room until they could add a bed. Harry didn't mind the futon at all.

As Harry laid there, enjoying his freedom for the moment, listening to Ichigo snooze lightly and Isshin's snores fill the house, he knew exactly what the feeling was that had taken hold the moment he stepped in the door.

He was home. And somehow, he didn't think Sirius or Remus would fault him for thinking that.

* * *

All too soon, he had to go back. But this time he knew for a fact that he had something to look forward to upon leaving the school.

Isshin had essentially given him an open door policy on his home. Which meant that Harry could actually enjoy having a home for a change.

It wouldn't take much convincing to get the Minister to seal all his records so he could leave in peace. He suspected the man had issues with Dumbledore, which he could easily use to his advantage. There was a reason the hat originally wanted him in Slytherin after all.

Hermione wasn't too happy about the fact that he bailed on the Yule Ball.

It didn't help that Rita found out and started to rag on him because he had made it very clear that he wouldn't tolerate her or her quills.

(Well, to be fair Harry did mock her with some rather clever and overused muggle word tricks.)

Hermione at least listen to reason when Harry held up his Christmas present to her.

It was a book on Japanese history. For the twins he simply handed them the names of the Marauders. Their _real_ names. It didn't take long for them to start calling him Lord Prongslet in the halls.

Harry bore it all with humor. Neville was delighted with his rare plant that Harry found in Japan. It had taken some doing to acquire it for the rather timid boy, but the look on his face spoke volumes.

Harry even got something for Draco, to the boy's complete shock.

He knew about the fact that Draco had a cat. And that he didn't really like the thing, since his mother picked it out. (His only consolation about it was that his mother let him name it.)

So Harry got him something he might actually enjoy taking care of.

Something that was semi-illegal to have.

A Japanese wyrm. Like a dragon, only it doesn't breathe fire and is slightly more vulnerable to magic.

Draco loved it as soon as he opened the box that Harry sent in Hedwig's claws.

Of course Harry's abrupt disappearance before the ball set off an avalanche of rumors. Most of them revolving around his 'preferences'. Harry took it all in with humor, but said nothing.

Fred and George had grinned when they found out the true reason Harry ran from the school.

"I loathe dancing. And frankly the school would have been far too crowded for my taste."

"And the fact that girls would have been falling all over you...?" Fred left hanging.

Harry smirked evilly.

"They would have had to fight off Alyss first. She's really possessive around other females."

The two twins grinned even wider.

"And around guys?"

Harry blushed slightly.

"I've been told by a very amused cat that most girls find two hot guys going at it to be..."

The twins laughed like loons.

"So ickle Harry has been exposed to a much wider world!" crowed George.

"Keep it up, and I will tell your mother where to find that stash of prank ideas you have hidden. A certain cat we both know has found most of your not so obvious hiding places."

They looked aghast.

"Dear me, brother of mine! It seems Harry is trying to become a Prefect early!" said Fred in mock horror.

"Indeed!"

Harry didn't try to hide his snort of amusement.

"Then I suppose I won't let you in on a secret that not even Hermione knows just yet..." he hinted.

The two zoned in on him like hawks.

"What secret?"

Harry pulled them into an unused classroom. And smirked.

"How would you two like to open your shop in Japan, not England? Then your mother wouldn't have a say in anything."

They looked intrigued.

"And where would this mysterious contact be coming from?"

"Japan's pure-bloods. You know my friend Ichigo?"

Their eyes widened. And then they started to cackle insanely. Soon they began to plot with their younger brother.

* * *

***In Japan, Christmas is traditionally a holiday for lovers.**


	4. Chapter 4

Harry stared at the maze with distrust. He had the highest point margin of all _four_ champions, which was saying something. It didn't hurt that he had been going through this nonsense for years already.

So he knew with certainty that this was going to be bad. Horribly, painfully, depressingly bad.

His feelings about the matter proved true as he encountered almost no resistance in reaching the center. Aside from the Acromantula, Hagrid's new pet project (a horrifying creature he called blast ended skrewts) and some weird mist that turned him upside down for a moment, he faced nothing life threatening.

Which told him that _A_) he was going to have to deal with Voldemort at the very least and _B_) somehow the idiot was going to manage to manifest a physical body.

So he really wasn't looking forward to this.

Much to his shock, Cedric joined him at the end.

"So who takes the goblet?"

"I'll take the stupid thing, you tell Dumbledore that he is a total ass for not placing proper wards around the stupid cup," said Harry promptly.

Cedric stared at him.

"For the past _four_ bloody years, I have had to deal with some nonsense or other because he doesn't think. And frankly I don't want your death on my conscience. Either way, I am making sure Hufflepuff wins the cup this year."

Cedric nodded surprised.

"Thanks for that by the way."

"I'm not returning to Hogwarts next year. Dumbledore can kiss my ass," said Harry, taking firm hold of the cup.

Sure enough, he was whisked away by the hidden portkey. Cedric stared in disbelief.

"I can't wait to see how he explains this..." he muttered.

* * *

Ten seconds after landing, he was stunned and bound to an angel statue. By Pettigrew of all people.

He was amused and annoyed.

"You do realize I own an owl who loves to eat rats, don't you?" he said bored.

An hour after being sent to a graveyard, and Harry watched in boredom as Pettigrew attempted to resurrect Voldemort. He did raise an eye when the idiot cut off his own hand though. When the rat came at him with a knife for the final ingredient, he smirked cruelly.

"_Cheshire! Attack!"_

A black blur with a white tipped tail struck the traitor. Peter screamed in pain as he fell toward the cauldron.

Somehow, Peter managed to scratch Harry with the blade before he fell on the cauldron.

Harry watched in horror as the blood landed right in the fell mixture.

Voldemort had returned. Cheshire took his queue and jumped back onto Harry's arms.

* * *

Voldemort stalked to the annoying pest. The cat had proved to be an unexpected hindrance.

The moment he touched the boy, he screamed. He smirked.

The precious blood wards wouldn't prove an issue. Now that he had the brat's blood in him, they were a moot point. He went to Pettigrew, and forced the rat to hold out his uninjured arm. Soon enough his minions started arriving. He prepared his spiel about how the Potter brat no longer stood a chance.

He was very annoyed that the boy looked rather bored with him. Finally, the brat spoke.

"Really Moldy-shorts, you had these idiots at your beck and call, and you chose the traitorous rat to brew your potion? And now look at you! You look more like a horror movie reject than a proper Dark Lord out for revenge! Seriously, why did you go with the glowing red eyes?"

Voldemort was furious. The brat didn't seem to care about the fact that he had him at his mercy!

"_CRUCIO!"_

Harry screamed in pain, and he smirked. Now _that_ was the effect he was looking for!

Then Harry shot his mouth off again, further infuriating him. He decided against the magic duel. This brat had to die!

"_Avada...!"_ he began to cast the curse.

Then everything went downhill for him.

* * *

Harry watched through Ichigo's eyes as he pierced his body with Rukia Kuchiki's sword. At that moment, Voldemort was trying to kill him with the killing curse again.

Only something happened that no one could have foreseen.

When Ichigo gained his Soul Reaper powers for the first time, Harry received such a massive boost of power that his spiritual body and his physical body became a minor matter.

He would no longer have to worry about accidentally misplacing his body. Because now, his physical body was a tiny keychain on his sword.

Voldemort was very, very surprised to see Harry bloody Potter standing in front of him with a long sword aimed at his throat.

"Now I think it's time we had a little chat, don't you?" he purred in a sadistic manner.

Much to the horror of the Death Eaters, Harry was more than a match for their master _without_ his magic. It didn't help when they saw what his sword turn into.

Voldemort and Pettigrew screamed like the damned when Harry gutted one of them and took the legs off the other.

When Harry went to the port key with a crying Pettigrew, he heard loud popping noises, like someone killing a large amount of bubble rap behind him. Voldemort was among those who fled.

"Wimps."

Harry switched back to his human form, and Cheshire vanished back into the Abyss to recover.

* * *

Pure chaos. That was how the scene was described by those who happened to see Harry Potter return with a heavily injured Peter Pettigrew and an annoyed look on his face.

Upon asking what happened, he became even _more _cross.

"That two bit hack used my blood to come back. And no, I will not end your stupid war for you," answered Harry.

(Upon learning that Pettigrew was in fact alive, Fudge was forced to give Sirius a trial. And when Harry found out, he made very sure that the Minister wouldn't have his godfather Kissed before his sentence was heard by several reporters.)

* * *

Harry boarded the train. He had actually enjoyed the end of year feast. For the first time in a hundred years, Hufflepuff won the house cup. And he couldn't be happier for them.

With him out of the school, it would be easier for the other houses to get the cup.

Harry did the only sensible thing he could. Since he knew full well that Hermione would at the very least try to follow him, he arranged a port key to Diagon through the goblins. Yoruichi would meet him there. He would be taken straight to Gringotts, where he would have a minor shopping spree before his flight in ten hours.

He couldn't wait to leave, for one important reason.

When Harry Potter stepped one foot off the plane into Japan, he would no longer exist. The passport was set to register him as Yoru Shihouin, on a student visa to Britain.

Once he stepped off the plane, he wouldn't have to worry about Fudge trying to force him back. Or even Dumbledore.

Harry tried to relax. Hermione started to badger him because he refused to mention his holiday plans, aside from leaving England.

Finally, he got up.

"Where are you planning on going?" she demanded.

"I need to go to the loo. Unless I need to clear that with you first?" he said annoyed.

He had the sneaking suspicion that Hermione had been bribed by the old man to find out where he was heading.

Harry passed by the twins, who gave him a thumbs up. Hermione would have to get past them in order to get to the bathroom, and they were busy taking up the hallway by playing exploding snap.

When Harry reached the baggage compartment, he ducked out to the end of the train. There was a small platform that the students never used, for obvious reasons.

Harry took out his Firebolt, and when he got to the bridge, he jumped off the platform.

No one saw him, or knew that he had gotten off already. And there wouldn't be any trains on the tracks for hours at the least. In midair, he mounted his broom and landed safely on the tracks.

His grin was wide, as he activated the port key.

And just like that, Harry had managed to completely ditch his friends and beat everyone who knew him on the train to London. Hours before anyone expected him to be there.

* * *

Yoruichi grinned when she heard her son curse. There was a reason why she had agreed to meet him at the bank and not on the train.

"Ready to go boya?"

"Let's get this over with. I want to be on that plane before Dumbledore realizes I'm gone."

Harry and Yoruichi went shopping. His first task was a new wardrobe. He had left Dudley's cast offs for the needy. After that he got a lot of electronics and enough books to amuse him until the plane landed.

Once he was through with the muggle malls, he went back to the Alley and hit the other stores.

And he made sure to get an expandable bag to put everything in. Potions, books, owl food, the works.

By the time they got to the air port, Harry and Yoruichi were awaiting the call for boarding. While they waited, they had a nice hot dinner.

Finally, they started to board. This time Yoruichi let Harry have the window seat. He made sure to drink a light amount of sleeping potion when they started handing out food. He was out like a light for sixteen hours.

Yoruichi woke him up with a glass of ice water. It worked like a charm.

"I'm up, I'm up."

"We're about to land. Thought you would want to get off on your own two feet."

"Couldn't you have pinched me or something?"

"Where's the fun in that?" she asked in return.

Harry waited until the plane landed before he grabbed his bag. Everything he owned was in a single carry on...that had been charmed by the nice owner of the book shop.

Since it was far too early for them to bother the Kurosaki family, Yoruichi took them to a friend of hers. Urahara was a night owl anyway.

* * *

"Welcome back Yoruichi! And who is this?"

Yoruichi smirked.

"This is Yoru...my adopted son."

Urahara dropped his cane in surprise.

"How did this happen?"

Yoruichi explained where she had been for the past seven months, and why Yoru was now her son. Urahara only seemed mildly surprised.

"So you two are staying the night until morning?"

"At least until I can get myself transferred into the high school. Then I can bug Ichigo."

"Yeah, about that..."

Yoru honed in on the man.

"Ichigo recently acquired a new...roommate."

"Who?"

"Rukia Kuchiki of Squad thirteen."

"About how long has this been going on?"

"Three, four days."

"Wait...is Ichigo a soul reaper?"

"A substitute soul reaper to be exact."

"Did he suddenly gain his powers around ten, nine o'clock a few days ago?" asked Yoru.

"Sounds about right. Why?"

"I got a massive power surge about three or four days ago. I thought it was because the dark tosser finally came back," said Yoru.

"Was that how you escaped? Your soul reaper powers were boosted?" asked Yoruichi.

"My human body ended up as a key chain inside my pocket. I used Cheshire's claws to get rid of a few Death Eaters," said Yoru.

"So what's your zanpakuto's power?"

"I think a demonstration is in order, don't you Yoruichi?"

The woman smiled fiercely. This would be fun!

* * *

"Don't hold back Urahara. That boy has managed to keep me from killing him for an entire hour without stopping."

Urahara drew his sword from the cane.

"_Awaken, Benihime."_

Harry took a stance, and drew his sword. The sword thrummed with a hidden power waiting to be unleashed.

As Urahara went to cut Yoru, the boy activated his sword.

"_Claw apart the boundaries, Cheshire Neko!"_

Urahara held onto his precious hat before it could be blown away. And stared at the boy before him.

The figure in front of him looked like Yoru, but he didn't _feel_ like the boy.

He felt far too dark to be Yoru. (Which is kind of ironic considering Yoru means _night._)

Yoru's claws were making quick work of Urahara's coat. It didn't take too long to guess what his ability was.

"I think I understand your power now."

Yoru purred. He blamed Cheshire for that quirk.

"Oh? Do tell..."

"I believe you tap into the Cheshire Cat's natural ability to get people lost. His little pocket dimension is well known for being a maze type. Every time you use your claws to break apart the seams that keep it closed, what you are really doing is slipping into his world and popping back out where your target is."

"So?"

"How do you know where your target is?" asked Urahara, curious.

Yoru clicked his claws together. They made a 'snick' sound (about the same sound as knives being sharpened) and a mirror appeared.

"I use the mirror memory. It's not that hard to pick a position to attack when I have my enemies reflected in the mirrors."

"Which means Cheshire is a reflective and water type sword. Interesting."

"Not really. The Abyss is pretty much a gigantic puddle with toys strewn about. The Chains that roam around are little more than overgrown dolls that kill people," said Yoru bored.

It was then that Urahara heard the insane giggling. He shook it off, having given off a few of his own over the years. It didn't really bother him that the laughter didn't sound human in the least.

At least until he felt the pressure that accompanied it.

"Looks like Alyss wants to play again Yoru," yawned Yoruichi.

Yoru grinned, and vanished. A girl completely decked in white jumped out, and was soon playing an advanced game of tag with Yoru. Urahara watched in surprise.

"Your adoptive son is friends with _her_ of all people?"

"Cheshire is one of her favorite Chains. What did you expect to happen?" asked Yoruichi, amused by his reaction.

Urahara said nothing as the two finally collapsed worn out. Alyss seemed more _sane_ than he had heard. He believed it was Yoru's influence.

* * *

"Everyone, greet your newest transfer student, Yoru Shihouin!"

Out of all the students, only Ichigo looked ecstatic to see the transfer. Many were now curious what caused the usually stoic boy to light up like that.

And many of the straight girls cooed when they saw the new boy. His shoulder length raven black hair was brushed to a shine, though it had the same spikes that Ichigo had. His emerald eyes shone brightly behind his new contacts (Yoruichi had dragged him to the eye doctor to get his new prescription) and held a spark of mischief.

He wore the uniform casually (he borrowed Ichigo's spare) and didn't have the tie on. On his bag was a little white rabbit with a large white bow.

(Naturally Rukia's eyes zoomed in on that particular key chain.)

"Shihouin-san, you may take the other side of Kurosaki."

Yoru walked confidently up to Ichigo with a grin. Ichigo had a bigger one plastered on his face. Much to the shock of his classmates, it didn't looked fake.

By lunch Yoru was surrounded. Fortunately Ichigo happened to help fend off most of the questions.

"So where are you staying?" asked Ichigo.

"Think your dad would mind if I moved in with you guys? Urahara is nice and all, but he's a total head case sometimes. He acts and behaves like an idiot, and I have difficulty suppressing the urge to steal his stupid fan."

"Um, about that."

"I already know about Rukia. Thanks for that power boost by the way."

"What power boost?"

"Your little stunt in gaining Shinigami powers ended up splitting your spiritual pressure down the link to me. Because of that I totally kicked ass."

Ichigo sputtered as Harry shared the memories with his brother. A light of understanding hit him, then he had to ask.

"Wait, how did your sword change like that? Mine's just a giant blade!"

Yoru shot him a look.

"She didn't explain about Shikai to you? They have names, baka!"

"The swords...have names."

It wasn't a question.

"She didn't explain it to you? Bloody hell. A Shinigami's sword is basically another part of their soul. Think of them as an extra personality, only they can actually effect the field of battle. My sword let's me escape any problematic situation and make completely inescapable sneak attacks from _any_ direction."

"Sounds like the perfect power for someone who hates having attention drawn to them," commented Ichigo.

"I'll see if Rukia will let me teach you a few tricks so you can do more damage."


	5. Chapter 5

Yoru looked up when he saw the owl tapping at the window. It was bearing a letter from the twins.

_'Hello Yoru! (Hope we spelled it right)_

_Things are going fine back home, no worries. Anyway, we were hoping to take you up on that offer for a shop in Japan. Mum's been driving us up the wall by making us do endless chores._

_Think you could lend us some gold to get a port key to Japan? _

_(By the way, we have something new we need tested and hoped you would help us out. It's something to get you out of all that extra homework you mentioned. We're calling them Skiving Snackboxes.)_

_Love Gred and Forge.'_

Yoru grinned, and called Hedwig. He wrote a quick note to the goblins and included the twin's vault number (he had helped them set it up exclusively for their shop). She went off to transfer an extra thousand galleons into their account. He only hoped it wouldn't cost more than that.

* * *

George looked over their account statement in disbelief.

"Cor..."

Fred looked and gaped.

"He sure doesn't do things by halves, does he?"

His double shook his head. The two quickly packed for their trip, and sent their surrogate brother a thank you and told him roughly when they would arrive.

International port keys took at least an hour for each country they passed. It was generally recommended to get an expandable trunk and sleep it off.

Hedwig flew off to find her master.

* * *

Yoru was waiting with a grinning Ichigo and a curious Rukia.

Once she got over the fact that Ichigo's _brother_ not only knew more about the soul society than Ichigo, but happened to be a soul reaper himself, she slowly grew to like the boy.

Of course it didn't hurt that Yoru had introduced her to Alyss, who was more than happy to play with only her rabbit and bunny dolls. (Rukia, once she got over her initial reaction to Alyss' nature, quickly became friends with the insane girl.)

A trunk landed with a solid 'thump' and Yoru quickly opened it. Much to the shock of Rukia (and amusement of the boys) a pair of identical red heads popped out of the trunk.

Yoru laughed and tackled them both in a hug. The twins laughed, and soon Ichigo was introduced to the infamous Terror Twins that had heard so much about.

Ichigo's jaw _did_ drop when he learned how much Harry had transferred to their account.

"You really don't know the value of money, do you?" he said, shaking his head.

"Please, it's not like I have any better use for those bloody coins. Oh, and you can keep what's left to help with the shop," said Yoru as an afterthought.

It took little time to get the twins situated. They only needed a minor translator charm to get settled in. In a week they would go looking for a place to set up shop.

(In the meantime Ichigo and Yoru agreed to test their Skiving Snackboxes for them. It made a better excuse for why they cut class all the time.)

Much to the surprise of the twins, some of the more volatile snacks didn't work on either Ichigo or Yoru. Rukia, when given one to see if it was just the two of them, was very surprised to find that she had the same results.

In the spirit of figuring out what was going on, they tricked Urahara into eating one. Same results, though he had an amusing face at the taste.

(Frankly Yoru was _terrified_ of what would happen if Urahara and the twins started collaborating.)

* * *

Yoru was annoyed. For the past few nights, the two of them had tried repeatedly to figure out why Ichigo couldn't hear his sword talk.

And why Yoru kept hearing a woman screaming bloody murder at Ichigo for some reason.

After the fourth time he heard the woman swearing at him, he had enough. He took Ichigo's massive soul slayer and growled. It was then that he realized where the yelling had been coming from.

It was the damn sword.

"Ichigo, either you have a female sword, or this one has been given to you by accident," said Yoru irritated.

Rukia, when she heard the fact that the sword was _female_ looked at him in shock.

"Can you ask her name?" she said.

Yoru concentrated, and his eyes opened.

"She says her name is Shiroyuki. From what I can tell she's a snow type."

Rukia's eyes widened greatly.

"It can't be..."

"Rukia, what's wrong?" asked Ichigo.

"Shiroyuki is _my_ sword," she said quietly.

"So that's what's going on. No wonder he can't find the name. His sword must be stuck in his soul!" said Yoru.

"How is that possible?" asked Ichigo.

"Your natural powers were awakened by Rukia, correct? It is possible that when she lost her own powers, her sword was accidentally transferred to you. Which is probably why she is currently swearing at you at the top of her lungs," he added dryly.

"Wait...how can you even hear her? Only the sword's soul reaper should be able to hear their voice."

Yoru shrugged.

"I've learned one inescapable fact about myself after four years of magical training. I...am...not...normal. By _any_ standards. Result of prolonged exposure to me tends to warp the standards of normality to the extreme."

"Case in point, our bond," said Ichigo.

"Of course it could be because of our bond that I can hear her and you can't..." mused Yoru.

"Meh, who cares? So long as we take out the hollows on time, what does it matter?" asked Ichigo.

"Point. If anything bad ever really comes up you can always yell for me, and we can take care of it."

"_We_?"

Yoru grinned.

"Cheshire and me. He's a bit miffed that you keep killing them before he has a chance too. He likes to use his claws."

"Cheshire wouldn't happen to be Alyss' cat with the white tipped tail by any chance...?" said Rukia.

Yoru said nothing, but his smirk said it all.

* * *

Chad brought with him a strange bird. Yoru, being a fan of all avian creatures by nature (he loves his owl after all) asked if he could take the thing out of the cage.

Much to the disbelief of his fellow students, not only did Yoru know exactly how to handle birds (without them feeling the need to take off) but the thing talked to boot.

Yoru sensed the danger of the bird. But he was too much of an animal lover to care about it at the moment.

He was, however, more than happy to give Chad (Ichigo's nickname for the tallest boy in the class) a few bird keeping tips.

Which lead to a few of them raising eyebrows at the fact that he owned an actual owl.

Much to the relief of Ichigo, Yoru seemed to find his place with his friends rather easily. He and Tatsuki would debate martial arts (Yoru having a healthy interest and in desperate need of a good sparring partner that didn't try to cave his head in), he would do something no one else _dared _to consider (Orihime Inoue's concoctions from hell) and he enjoyed talking to Chad about Mexico and it's history.

(It wasn't any surprise that Yoru could more or less understand Spanish. The language was roughly based in Latin, which he had studied extensively for years. It just took a bit of correcting for a few words.)

It seemed to surprise everyone that even though Yoru was born (and raised) in England, that his Japanese was as perfect as a native.

Fortunately he could fall back on Ichigo's letters as an explanation.

(Much to the relief of Ichigo and Rukia, the twin's invention proved to be very useful when her soul pager alerted them to a hollow. Ichigo got very good at slight of hand.)

Yoru, on the other hand, helped them keep up with the homework they missed.

* * *

"So let me get this straight. There's a hollow chasing Chad because of the bird, and you expect me to stay here? Are you out of your mind?" said Yoru.

Ichigo stared.

"How about you protect Rukia and Chad while _I _deal with the hollow? I've been so bored recently it's not funny."

"Point. Fine, you can take the hollow unless something comes up or he royally pisses me off."

They shook on it.

In the end, it was Ichigo who dealt the final blow when he learned _why_ the hollow was chasing the bird.

It gave the brothers their first look at the gates of Hell itself.

"Damn. How much you want to bet once we deal with ol' Moldy Shorts we'll see it again?"

"That's a sucker's bet and you know it," snorted Ichigo.

* * *

Yoru managed to leave the class with Ichigo. Rukia had picked up a useful item to help keep the ruse that Ichigo was still there.

It was called Soul Candy. (Actually the proper term was Gikongan, but according to Rukia they had it changed because the Shinigami Women's Association complained about the name not being cute enough.)

Ichigo popped it in, and the alert went off. Yoru, bored and pretty much in the mood to skip class today, went to find a spot to take a nap.

That was his original plan, when until he realized that the soul was going to be a bigger problem than expected.

To his complete disbelief, the soul broke the fence without warning.

"Damn. That's some impressive leg strength," commented Yoru.

The soul flinched, as it had forgotten he was there.

"So what the hell are you? And don't bother trying to run, unless you want me to stun you."

The soul seemed to weigh it's options, and decided to go for broke.

"I'm a mod soul."

"And that is...?"

Seeing the surprised look on his face, Yoru learned that the soul Rukia had purchased had come from a long since discarded experiment. One that unfortunately, had been given a very short life span. Apparently there was a destroy-on-sight order for them.

"That's just stupid. You didn't ask to be created, so what the hell gives them the right to destroy you for being what they made you?"

Shocked that the kid _wasn't _going to destroy him (or turn him in) the soul agreed to stay put until Ichigo returned.

(Not like Yoru was going to give him a choice in the matter.)

* * *

Urahara learned too late that Ururu had sold the girl a defective product, and went to retrieve it.

Only to discover that Yoru wasn't going to let him destroy the soul if he could help it.

"You do realize that I don't have a choice, right?" asked Urahara.

"Are you currently part of the Soul Society?" asked Yoru.

"I left of my own accord..."

"Then why in the hell are you still _following_ their rules? I mean some I can understand, since they help keep the peace, but what reason do you have for destroying him aside from an order?" asked Yoru, annoyed.

Urahara couldn't answer him. It wasn't actually his problem, aside from selling bad merchandise. Besides, it wasn't like anyone in the Soul Society would get on his nerves if he let the mod soul go.

"Fine. You can keep it..." he muttered in defeat.

The mod soul seemed very surprised that someone had stood up for him.

"If Rukia has a problem I can reimburse her for a new soul," said Yoru with a shrug.

(While Yoru didn't have any of the Soul Society's currency, gold was still valuable. A few coins would easily pay for the purchase of a new soul.)

"So let me get this straight. You decided to help someone like him because you were bored?" asked Ichigo.

"No, I helped him because he was essentially sentenced to die because of what they made him into. And that just didn't sit well with me at all."

"So what are we going to call him?"

(The mod soul was currently in a stuffed lion that Ichigo had found discarded by the road.)

"How about Raion?"

Ichigo made a face.

"I vote Kon."

"As in Konpaku?" said Yoru incredulous.

"Show of hands for Raion?" said Rukia. Only Yoru raised his.

"And for Kon?" asked Ichigo.

The three of them raised their hands (and paw).

"Fine. From now on your name is Kon. Welcome to the world's strangest mismatched group," said Yoru.

* * *

Yoru cursed. Ichigo just _had_ to accept a challenge from Uryu. The only other person in the class who had glasses.

He managed to get along with the anti-social boy for one reason.

They were both in the same home economics club. Uryu raised an eyebrow at the fact that Yoru was so good at stitching and cooking, but said nothing. He accepted the boy's presence without question, since Yoru was at least quiet and willing to leave him alone.

Yoru, once he confirmed that their sisters were safe for the moment (Yuzu was at home and Karin was at school) raced to find Ichigo.

It seemed whatever Uryu used to attract the hollows, combined with Ichigo's inability to control his spiritual energy, was proving to be quite problematic. He kept running into people being attacked, which slowed him down considerably.

On the plus side, it was a miracle he hadn't run into anyone killed because of their stupid contest.

On the downside, he was wearing down quickly.

He growled.

"That does it. _Claw apart the boundaries, Cheshire Neko!"_

Yoru jumped into Cheshire's pocket dimension to locate his brother. He used the small amount of kido that Yoruichi and Urahara taught him to take out most of the hollows.

Finally, he found Ichigo. When he caught up to his brother he was going to kick his ass. And then he was going to rip Uryu a new one for coming up with this stupid contest.

It seemed Ichigo had yet to learn the fine art of keeping his mouth shut. Something Yoru was going to take great delight in teaching him repeatedly.

Rukia yelped when she saw the clawed form of Yoru come out of nowhere right beside her.

"How the hell do you do that?" she snapped.

"Cheshire's ability. Get used to it."

She scowled at him. Kon was still recovering from the kick she gave him for acting like a bigger idiot than usual.

Yoru watched in horror as the largest hollow he had ever seen split the sky in half.

It was massive, easily taller than the Astronomy tower. And it had weird holes along the nose, almost like a flute of sorts. It devoured it's own kind, and the spiritual pressure grew.

"What the bloody 'ell is that?" he asked.

"Menos Grande," breathed Rukia in horror.

"Grand Minus, really?" asked Yoru.

"We have to run! Only the punishment force or a captain can deal with one of those!" said Rukia in horror.

"Like hell am I running! Bigger isn't always better."

The two halves of the scarf that he wore whenever he activated Cheshire's power sounded in the silence. The covered him completely as he vanished...only to reappear before the Menos.

A single clawed hand struck at the mask, damaging it. Ichigo charged himself, attacking the feet. Yoru snorted. This wasn't a children's toy they were dealing with. And the only way that would work was if his sword had enough spiritual pressure behind it to make it fall.

With Rukia's sword working against him, there was little chance Ichigo could possibly beat the damn thing.

Then again, with the sheer _amount_ his brother had...

* * *

Between Ichigo and Yoru, the Menos didn't really stand much of a chance. Yoru was the one to deal the final blow, having severed the mask in half. Uryu at least redeemed himself when he helped Ichigo get his spiritual pressure back under control. It had gone wild when he countered the cero sent by the Menos.

Of course Yoru knew that things wouldn't remain peaceful for long. Especially not with that odd swallowtail butterfly that he had spotted through the mirrors.

He suspected (it was later confirmed by Urahara) that the butterfly was sent by the Soul Society.

So he trained and prepared for the worst.


	6. Chapter 6

Rukia was missing. Ichigo was mildly concerned, though he was alarmed when he found Kon. Yoru had decided to go on a midnight jog, since he couldn't sleep.

His sixth sense for trouble had gone off big time, only this seemed to be aimed more at Rukia than him for a change.

He sighed...then felt something in the air. It was strong, whatever it was.

Curious as to what it was, he went in that direction.

And was forcefully reminded of an old saying: _Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back._

And right at that moment, he _was_ the cat.

Because standing before him were two soul reapers. One with bright red hair that reminded him of the Weaslys, and the other was an aloof man who reminded him of Rukia. The one with the aloof air just screamed Nobility.

"Crap."

Rukia turned when she heard him, her eyes wide with shock.

"Yoru, what are you doing here?" she asked in surprise.

"Couldn't sleep, so I went out for a run. Though now I see _why_ I couldn't sleep..." he scowled.

"Who's this brat?" sneered the redhead.

Yoru looked right at him and scowled. The man seemed surprised that he heard him.

"This brat, as you so foolishly called me, can hear you just fine soul reaper. Judging from the emblem on the noble's back, you must be from Squad six. Which would make him (he nods to the black haired one) Byakuya Kuchiki. And from that band on your arm, you must be his lieutenant Renji Abarai."

Stunned silence met his words.

Finally 'Renji' spoke.

"How in the hell did you know that?"

"The same way I know that Rukia is a member of Ukitake's squad. I asked. Besides, my _mother_ was more than happy to tell me everything I wanted to know about the Soul Society while I was training with her," Yoru informed them amused.

"Who is your mother?" asked Byakuya. Yoru noted with interest that his voice would have females coming after him in droves.

"Yoruichi Shihouin. She took me in when no one else could."

The look of complete shock was worth it. Even Byakuya was surprised.

Since it looked like they were attempting to take her back by force, Yoru decided that they would have to go through him first.

Urahara had given him a special item that would push his soul out with a single touch. All he had to do was apply his spiritual energy to activate it.

Which he did. His body became a chain on his sword, which parried against Renji. To prove that he wasn't joking about Yoruichi being his mother, he used Shun po.

The look in their eyes was worth it.

Renji struck again, and finally copped onto the fact that he wasn't a match for him. So he activated his sword instead.

"_Howl, Zabimaru!"_

Yoru grinned evilly.

"Well if you're going to play _that_ game..."

"_Claw apart the boundaries, Cheshire Neko!"_

His claws looked sharper than usual, and the look on the soul reaper's faces was priceless.

Renji, as it turned out, was a mid-range fighter who relied on the sword's ability to extend to deal major damage. It didn't hurt that his sword now had a serrated edge to it.

Alas, his opponent was someone who dealt with sneak attacks from every direction.

It was with a comical look of complete shock that Yoru dealt more damage to Renji than the soul reaper had done to him. It was more than clear that Yoru was doing little more than toying with him.

Suddenly Ichigo appeared, and saw the fight.

Renji scoffed at the other's blade. It was little more than air compared to his. Yoru ducked another blow, and appeared behind his brother.

"Don't bother fighting him Ichigo. With that sword, the most you could do is block it for a few times. You'll have to wait before you even _think _of fighting at their level."

"So what the hell am I supposed to do?" asked Ichigo through gritted teeth.

"Bear with the pain, and wait for your chance to deal some payback."

"What pain?"

Byakuya had had enough of Yoru's toying, and went to remove his powers before he could react.

Instead he hit Ichigo. The orange haired boy was on the ground, bleeding heavily. The powers he gained from Rukia were gone.

Yoru, when he saw Byakuya vanish in a split second, had practically bolted into Cheshire's pocket dimension. The noble clearly didn't care that he had missed, since it was obvious that the green eyed boy was more concerned with saving his brother.

* * *

Ichigo woke up in his own body...though the person on top of him scared him half to death.

Yoru was in the corner, laughing like a hyena. His brother shot him a dirty look.

"Thanks Tessai!" said Yoru.

"I am going to throttle you...!"

"Wait until later aniki."

* * *

Yoru left the room to talk to Yoruichi...while Urahara told Ichigo exactly what the situation was.

"So you essentially told Byakuya that I was your mother," said Yoruichi. She was still in her feline form, to his amusement.

"It's not like I don't already think of you as my mom. You took better care of me during those months in Hogwarts than the Dursleys ever did."

Though she would be reluctant to admit it out loud, she had always considered Yoru her son since she first saw his shikai. The boy had all of her quirks, and was a natural at Shun po. She adored the boy as if he were her own.

And she already knew his mother could care less if Yoruichi raised him as her son. (She had tracked both James and Lily down in the English version of the Soul Society. Aside from being royally pissed at Dumbledore and the Dursleys, they gave her their blessings. Needless to say, when Dumbledore died he was going to be in a world of trouble.)

* * *

Since Yoru knew full well what Urahara had planned for his brother, he decided to spend his free time at the shop, training with the man.

He couldn't allow his sword skills to get rusty because he won his first real fight. Pride was the third reason people died in a fight.

(The first two was their opponent overpowered them or that they had a trick that they didn't know about.)

Once Ichigo was in the Shattered Shaft, Urahara helped Yoru tighten up his sword skills. It was a good way to kill time. (Yoru had charmed a pair of ear plugs so he wouldn't hear Ichigo screaming. As it was, he already heard his brother swear bloody murder on the one he dubbed Hat-n-Clogs.)

On the third day of the shaft, Ichigo finally found his own soul reaper powers. Along with another power he wasn't aware of. He broke the hollow mask, and scowled at Urahara.

The man was stupid enough to get close to Ichigo...who promptly slammed his hilt into Urahara's eye in revenge. Yoru, who had watched the whole thing, chuckled in amusement.

Urahara whined to the boy.

"You knew he was going to do that, didn't you?"

"Is it _my_ fault you didn't hear him plot your second death?" snickered Yoru.

Urahara grumbled, but announced that they would be moving on to lesson three.

Something Yoru was eager to join. Once they activated their swords, Ichigo was on the run. Though he had to be convinced that Urahara's sword cane was really a zanpakuto. (He _knew _Yoru's claws were dangerous.)

Yoru could finally hear the voice of Ichigo's sword. He also heard the name clearly.

But he wasn't going to tell Ichigo what it was. His brother had to learn the hard way.

* * *

_Why do you run, Ichigo? You still haven't called me. _

Ichigo only half paid attention to the voice. He had a sneaking suspicion it was his sword.

_Your opponents are a mere child who can only attack from behind, and a single man. Why do you fear them?_

Ichigo feared his brother for good reason. Urahara was just nuts.

_Face forward, Ichigo. You should be able to hear it now. What is plugging your ears...is only fear._

Ichigo paused.

_There is only one real enemy, and one of you. What is there to fear?_

_Abandon your fear. Face forward. Advance. Don't give an inch. Retreat and you will age. Be afraid and you will die._

_Now, say my name!_

* * *

Ichigo suddenly stopped. Urahara and Yoru waited. When he put his hand on what was left of his sword (Urahara had reduced it to little more than a hilt) Yoru did the smart thing and opened a rift. The minute Ichigo activated his sword, he was going to hide.

"Zangetsu!"

Yoru coughed from the smoke. What emerged was his brother...with what looked like an overgrown butcher's knife. He didn't think Ichigo could control the power of his sword just yet.

So he went into the mirror room and watched the scene play out.

Once Ichigo was unconscious (he had been up for three days after all) Yoru decided to take a nap.

For the rest of the week, Ichigo trained with Urahara. Yoru would have joined in, but there was a voice that kept bugging the hell out of him.

A voice coming from Ichigo's soul.

Normally he wouldn't pay attention to it, but it didn't sound like Zangetsu or Ichigo. Unfortunately, he didn't think it was a good idea at the moment to investigate.

The source of the voice sounded like it was still trying to figure out what form to take.

Not that he didn't spend his time constructively.

Instead of working on his sword play, he bugging Yoruichi to show him more kido. It didn't come as a surprise to them that Yoru was good at kido. The boy was a mage!

Much to the shock of Yoru, there were actually very few spells that could affect a soul reaper. Of those spells, most of them were useful only as pranks.

(I/E color changing charms, binding spells, anything that affected clothes and not the body...)

He was somewhat disappointed that the stunner wouldn't work. While Urahara had felt it, it didn't actually do anything but annoy him.

According to him, the spell only numbed wherever it hit. He could still use his arm or leg, but it felt like it had fallen asleep.

Fortunately, the twins had come up with a new line of pranks aimed solely at annoying Soul Reapers. (Yoruichi was their test subject.)

* * *

Yoru was armed with pranks and ready to annoy people. His body was currently hiding in the pocket dimension where Cheshire lived. The sentries who guarded that realm knew him well enough not to attack him.

To his amusement, they weren't going alone.

Uryu, Orihime, Chad and Yoruichi would be going with the two of them.

Ichigo had to be convinced to carry a bag full of the twin's pranks. It had taken some doing, but the twins finally assured him that he didn't need to pay them. The thousand Yoru had lent them for the port key more than covered what they were giving the two.

Even Yoruichi got something. Around her neck was a small ribbon with a bell. It was charmed to grow with her body if she switched back to her human form.

The bell would lead her to anyone she wanted to find, even Yoru. (Yoru had made it with a key to Cheshire's realm. Now she could pass through there.)

Yoru had to keep from laughing as Urahara knocked Ichigo out of his body without telling him. Ichigo cursed the man in his mind, and Yoru really had to keep from laughing.

Ichigo had a hell of an inventive imagination when it came to revenge.

_Easy brother. When this is all said and done, we can start a prank war against him._

Ichigo stopped growling and let an evil smirk light his face. Urahara had a foreboding chill go down his spine.

* * *

"Bloody hell!" swore Yoru, as they ran to avoid the cleaner.

"What _is_ that thing?" yelled Ichigo.

"The cleaner! It comes through once a month!" Yoruichi yelled back.

"Shouldn't that cackling moron _know_ when that damn thing is coming?" snarled Yoru.

The silence from Yoruichi spoke volumes.

Orihime managed to get them out using her power, but Yoruichi was not in a mood to deal with her stupidity. She got clawed for her trouble.

Ichigo went to enter the nicer looking town, but Yoru stopped him.

"Ichigo, do you see anyone going anywhere _near_ that spot? Anyone in normal clothing?" asked Yoru.

"No."

"Do you think soul reapers would let regular souls into their place without challenge?"

Ichigo worked through what his brother was getting at.

"You're saying that there's something there to keep normal spirits out?"

"That's right. I don't think the soul society is that easy to get into without challenge. Why don't we look for an alternate route?" said Yoru.

"He's right you know. Had you charged in you could have been crushed by the gates," said Yoruichi.

"What gates?"

"The entire Seireitei is surrounded by a massive wall. When someone gets to close, they come crashing down. And then you would have to deal with the gate keeper."

"So where else should we go?" asked Yoru.

"I have an old friend. She should be nearby."

"Lead the way."

* * *

"This woman...is not subtle," said Yoru dryly.

A large pair of arms were holding a banner proclaiming **"Kukaku ****Shiba!"**

"She's renowned for being flashy," commented, Yoruichi from his shoulder.

"Clearly."

Once they were inside, Yoruichi went straight to her old friend. And got a very odd look when Kukaku learned she had adopted Yoru.

Yoru of course, was his extremely polite self, which went over well with her. He was reminded of an older, female version of the terror twins.

Most of their party was forcefully taken to another room. Yoru didn't need any help channeling his powers.

He wasn't even going to use the same method as Ichigo to infiltrate the soul society.

"So which squad should I look for?" asked Yoru.

"Squad eleven is a good one to hide in. So long as you keep a low profile, most people won't question if you randomly destroy a building. Ukitake is pretty lax too," said Kukaku.

"Any descriptions of those two?"

"Zaraki has a spiked hairstyle with bells on the end. He usually has his lieutenant hanging off his shoulder, and she has pink hair. Ukitake is the only young squad captain with white hair. He has two of his officers acting as lieutenants," said Kukaku.

"Got it. So aim for those two, right?"

"They would be your best bet for hiding in plain sight," said Yoruichi.

"I'm off then. Try to keep my idiot brother alive, will you?"

Yoruichi chuckled, and waved him off.

Yoru decided to relax for a few hours before he went searching for the barracks. If he was lucky, he could help his brother navigate that much easier.

If his usual luck held out, then they were in for more trouble than they had anticipated.

Frankly he hoped his luck wasn't going to be that atrocious.

* * *

Alyss was bored. Yoru was off to rescue Rukia, one of the few people who would actually play with her and not run screaming.

So she decided to look for some more friends.

Her natural aura frightened off many soul reapers, who didn't know _why_ they were running away in the first place.

She was about to give up when someone finally stopped and didn't run.

It was a small girl with pink hair and a sword that dragged behind her on wheels. She had the badge of a lieutenant.

Alyss hoped the girl would play with her.

So she appeared in her usual rabbit doll.

Yachiru was many things. But stupid was not one of them.

"Hello!" she chirped.

Alyss giggled. Soon the two had a bit of a race going on between them. It ended when they finally crashed into the squad eleven barracks.

Zaraki looked up, and saw his lieutenant playing with a bizarre doll.

"That isn't one of Kurotsuchi's is it?" he asked.

The thing looked like something that insane bastard would cook up to scare people. Particularly the Kuchiki girl.

But he didn't think the insane freak would let that thing loose with Kuchiki behind bars.

"It's not one of his. This is one of the Abyss!" said Yachiru grinning.

Zaraki sat up. He had been expressing forbidden from going to the Abyss, for fear of annoying the being that controlled it. Central 46 didn't want him annoying Alyss for fear of her unleashing the Chains on them. They had enough issues with Hell, dammit!

* * *

_Three hours later..._

Yoru spotted Alyss' avatar, and decided that was the perfect place to hide.

If they could handle having her around, then they could easily handle his odd powers!


	7. Chapter 7

Yoru appeared in Squad eleven. Alyss, when she felt him appear, giggled insanely while circling him.

Yoru grinned.

"Ohayo!"

Zaraki and Yachiru stared at him. Where had he come from.

"So you are the infamous Kenpachi Zaraki and Yachiru. I've heard good things about you two."

Zaraki grinned fiercely.

"Have you come looking for a fight?" he asked, hopeful.

"Alas, no. My sword isn't suited for straight out fighting..." Zaraki looked disappointed... "But I know someone who would probably benefit from fighting you."

Zaraki perked up.

"My brother Ichigo has a sword that is more useful for straight out combat than anything else. Perhaps he can give you the fight you want."

Zaraki sensed the boy wanted something in exchange.

"What do you want kid?"

"Mind if I pretend to be a part of your squad until we leave? That way I can annoy the other captains without anyone suspecting I'm a Ryoka."

Zaraki had a fierce grin. Was that all?

"Fine."

"My brother has orange hair and is carrying a sword that looks more like a giant butcher's knife. It's held by a red thread across his chest, and he answers to the name Ichigo Kurosaki."

The captain grinned wider. That was more than a good enough description for him!

"Oh, and he has so much spiritual energy that he really can't control it. The only problem you might have with him is that he's a greenhorn when it comes to fighting with swords. He still has to get used to using his blade."

Zaraki laughed.

"You're alright kid! What's your name anyway?"

"Officially it's Yoru Shihouin. But everyone calls me Yoru Kurosaki."

Yachiru giggled as she jumped on his shoulder.

"Welcome to Squad 11, Yoru Kurosaki!"

He grinned.

* * *

In less than an hour, Yoru had stitched in the symbol for squad eleven. No one commented on his sudden appearance, or the fact that he hadn't been there the day before.

He suspected it was because Yachiru kept riding on his shoulder. No one was in the mood to question _her._

It wasn't until noon that he felt his brother's spiritual pressure appear. He looked up, and gaped.

He was really, really glad he had snuck in using Cheshire's powers. He didn't like the way that ball looked when it crashed into the unseen force protecting the soul society.

When the ball split apart, separating most of his friends, he knew he would have his work cut out for him.

"So which one is the strongest?" asked Yachiru.

"In terms of power, Ichigo. In terms of intelligence, my mother. I'm guessing we'll find Ichigo before we find her."

Yachiru jumped on Zaraki's shoulder, and Yoru went to mess with Ichigo.

* * *

Yoru found a small problem with his new status as part of Squad eleven. Some of the seated officers didn't know about him just yet.

Like the bald guy with the spear.

"Who the hell are you?"

"New recruit to squad eleven. Yoru Kurosaki."

Ichigo gave him a blank look of surprise. Yoru explained without letting up his mask.

Before Ikkaku could attack Ichigo again, Yoru smirked and stopped the blade.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" he snarled.

"Sorry, but I promised Zaraki that _he_ could kick Ichigo's ass. Don't want you killing him before the captain has a chance to toughen him up."

Ikkaku looked at him with disbelief. Ichigo growled.

"What the hell do you mean you promised to give me to the captain?" yelled Ichigo. He didn't realize his mistake until it was too late.

"So you're with them."

"Sort of. Zaraki agreed to let me pretend to be part of your squad until this was all over in exchange for fighting this idiot."

"And why would you sell out your friend?"

"Because he needs to get his ass kicked in order to get stronger. Besides, he was the only one who wouldn't break if Kenpachi Zaraki played with him for a while."

Ikkaku grinned wildly. He liked this kid already!

Plus with that uniform and attitude, he didn't doubt the kid could act like part of the squad and get away with it.

"Fine, I won't kill him."

Yoru grinned evilly.

"That's good. Otherwise I would have given _Yachiru_ candy and set her on you."

Ikkaku paled. His lieutenant was a menace when she had enough sugar in her.

* * *

Ichigo growled after he beat Ikkaku.

"So what was that about?"

"I am more of an infiltrator than a fighter. It was easier to pretend to be part of the squads than to run around escaping the idiots."

"And what about selling me off to this Zaraki?"

"He's a brawler with too much spirit energy. So he rarely finds anyone challenging to fight. I figured he could help you learn more about your zanpakuto while giving you a real challenge."

Ichigo growled at his brother.

"I'm not a character from _Dragonball!_" he growled.

"Sad fact is, Ichigo, that you _do_ actually get stronger every time you get pushed to your limits. And to face Byakuya, you're going to need that extra boost."

Ichigo didn't like it one bit.

"I'll make sure Ikkaku gets medical attention. You better run."

"You are so going to pay for this," said Ichigo as he left.

"Yare yare..."

Yoru lifted Ikkaku up, and said "So which direction to the medical center? You can back up my claim with being in squad eleven."

Ikkaku gave him directions, noting with approval at the ease the boy showed in carrying him there.

Yoru knew full well that he was too new for people to recognize him, which was why he bothered to carry Ikkaku with him.

Since he really didn't want to deal with people, he decided to stick with Ikkaku for a bit. Knowledge was power, especially since some of his information might be out of date.

Ikkaku decided to tell him everything he needed to know. From the names of the captains to their seated officers. He even included information Yoru wasn't aware he would need, like important events.

* * *

As they spent the two hours talking, Yoru had to hide when the captain of squad twelve appeared. The man gave off a vibe similar to Dumbledore, only he didn't bother trying to hide it.

Ikkaku was a bit surprised at his zanpakuto's ability.

Yoru came out when Kurotsuchi left...and Zaraki arrived.

"Yo."

"Wondered where you went."

"Found Ikkaku battling the idiot, decided to lend a hand and possibly make my story more credible."

Zaraki grinned when Ikkaku confirmed Yoru's assessment of Ichigo.

"What was that ability you showed just now?" asked Ikkaku, curious.

"My sword's power is the ability to make a sneak attack from any direction. Also useful for spying on people, now that I think about it."

"You should have gone into squad two then," said Ikkaku.

"I would have, but your captain seemed like a better option. Besides, I heard from my mother that the squad two captain would be more likely to kill me just for being related to her."

"Your...mother?"

Yoru grinned evilly.

"My adoptive mother...Yoruichi Shihouin."

Yoru was beginning to _love_ the looks on people's faces when they learned who had adopted him.

Ikkaku finally spoke.

"Yeah...now I see why you chose our squad..."

Yoru laughed, and went with Zaraki. If nothing else, simply being next to him would keep people from doubting his claim.

* * *

Yoru waited up with Yachiru as Ichigo fought Kenpachi. He had been delighted to find out that Ichigo _did_ need a kick in the 'nads from the man just to learn a few things about fighting. Yoru had long since learned why he fought.

Ichigo needed to do the same.

While they watched (and Yoru was sorely disappointed in his brother. Why did he keep running?) he shared snacks with Yachiru.

Including a drink that would be banned from her after he left. A drink called..._Mountain Dew._

The stuff was highly caffeinated, had enough sugar to give someone a high, and was carbonated. One can of the stuff would give any child the ability to jump on walls.

Yachiru had at least _ten._ And she was almost vibrating in her seat.

While they were watching, Yoru could hear more than Zaraki and Ichigo talking.

He also heard the swords.

For some inexplicable reason, Yoru could hear the zanpakuto talk. He had originally believed that it was because of the bond with Ichigo that he could hear Zangetsu and the other voice.

Now he wasn't so sure.

Until the mystery power proved more trouble than it was worth, he wasn't going to speak about it.

As it was, he was listening to Zangetsu making a rather valid point about pride. Whoever or whatever the third voice was, it seemed to listen to the old man.

Yoru was almost bored listening to them argue.

"Hey Yachiru, do you think the captain would be mad if I helped Ichigo get stronger for the next time they run into each other?"

She shook her head. Kenpachi would probably be delighted if Ichigo got stronger, because then they could fight more. As it was, Ichigo was already on his good side for being able to wound him.

Most people didn't have the power necessary to get past his spirit energy.

* * *

Once the two finally dealt a massive blow, Ichigo passed out. Yachiru took care of Kenpachi while Yoru carried Ichigo. As far as anyone knew, Yoru was off chasing Ryoka.

He followed Yoruichi's signature. His adoptive mother knew he had Ichigo, and was determined to at least keep the idiot alive.

Ichigo awoke to see Yoru and Yoruichi watching him.

"How long was I out?"

"An hour or so. Chad's alive and being treated by squad four. Orihime and Uryu have managed to hide by stealing uniforms. Ganju and Hanataro are currently heading, or near the Repentance cell," said Yoru.

"How do you know all that?" asked Yoruichi.

"Cheshire's mirrors are good for more than just sneak attacks. I've been keeping track of everyone for days now."

"A pity you can't hide in Squad 2. Your abilities would make Soi Fon very happy," said Yoruichi, shaking her head.

"People keep saying that. But until you settle whatever issues she has with you, I can't go near them."

Yoruichi pulled out a strange mask that had managed to save Ichigo's life. It was the same one he saw Hanataro throw away in the sewers.

Yoru stared at the mask, and something clicked.

"I'll be buggered. So _that's _the third voice I kept hearing!"

The two looked at him.

"What do you mean?" asked Ichigo, sitting up.

"I can hear everything that went on in your inner world. And the voices of all the zanpakuto I run into. And for the past few times you've fought, I've been hearing three voices."

They had a look of surprise and confusion now.

"One was yours. One was Zangetsu. The third one I couldn't pin down until I realized what the hell it was."

"What is it then?" asked Ichigo, hoping his brother would get to the point.

"You regained your powers by the shattered shaft, right? And when you came out, you had a hollow's mask and a soul reaper's uniform. Which means that buried in your soul are the powers of a hollow."

Ichigo stared at him in shock.

"I...have the powers of a hollow?"

"It's the only explanation as to the mask that keep appearing. Somewhere in your soul is a hollow version of yourself."

"Is that bad thing?" wondered Ichigo.

"I'm going to try something, so don't freak out. What I am about to attempt will feel weird, but it should help in the long run."

"What are you going to do?" asked Yoruichi.

"I'm going into his inner world through our bond. Maybe I can talk to his hollow self and make an agreement for later."

Suddenly they all felt the spiritual pressure of Byakuya...and it was coming from the repentance cell. Ichigo was so concerned for his friends that he wanted to go help them, despite having a major injury.

Yoruichi pushed him back down.

"I'll go deal with it. It'll be a good excuse to piss off Byakuya again!" grinned Yoru.

"I'll teach Ichigo about Bankai, and we can deal with his hollow self later," she said firmly.

Yoru vanished using his sword, and reappeared right as Ganju was getting sliced by Byakuya's sword.

Byakuya's eyes widened in anger when he realized who had just nicked him on the cheek.

"You again?" he growled.

Yoru purred evilly.

"Yes me. And I have been hiding in plain sight just so I could annoy you."

Yoru easily dodged the multiple blades of Senbonzakura. He used Shun Po to check on Rukia and Hanataro.

"You can try all you want Byakuya Kuchiki. But unless you make your sword faster, you will never be able to dodge my claws," said Yoru.

He vanished and reappeared in a split second, and Byakuya's coat was split in half. His eyes widened at the damage done.

Yoru grinned, and clicked his claws together.

"Care for another round? Or have I made my point?"

"You will pay for your insolence, brat."

"Later maybe. But not today."

Yoru finally faced the white haired man who had approached.

"So you are Captain Ukitake. I've heard very good things about you and your squad," said Yoru.

Ukitake's eyes widened. He didn't expect this newcomer to know who he was.

"Of course Mother described you pretty well."

Sensing the unspoken question, Yoru grinned at Byakuya.

"Oh? You didn't pass along my name to your fellow captain, Byakuya?"

"I didn't feel the need to repeat your name, brat."

"So you didn't think the others needed to know about Yoru _Shihouin_, the adopted son Yoruichi?" he grinned even wider.

The shocked silence made his day. He loved seeing the look on people's faces when they heard his mother's name. Though he wasn't going to mention that name to Soi Fon, because he heard she had unresolved issues with Yoruichi.

Yoru turned to Ukitake again.

"I'll leave their care in your hands, Ukitake-taicho. Ja ne."

His scarf covered him and he vanished without a trace. Ukitake got over his shock in time to call his two officers. Today had been more than surprising.

* * *

Ichigo was waiting impatiently for his brother. While Yoruichi had shocked the hell out of him by her transformation, he was worried about Yoru.

When he appeared, Ichigo let loose a sigh of relief.

"Really, how could you be worried about me?" asked Yoru.

"I know your luck."

Yoru winced.

"I hope you're ready. Because when we're done, you are going to regret being trained by Yoruichi," said Yoru.

"What about you?" asked Yoruichi.

"What about me?"

"Don't you want to learn Bankai?"

"While that would be fun, I'll be talking to Ichigo's hollow form while he learns about bankai."

"Try not to get killed, or worse, stuck," said Yoruichi.

"Yes, Mum."

* * *

Yoru went with them, found a good spot where he wouldn't fall, and went inside himself. He was going to follow his bond to Ichigo and enter the inner world of his brother.

Hopefully, this wouldn't be as painful as he thought it would be.


	8. Chapter 8

Yoru landed on a sideways building. Ichigo had materialized his sword's spirit, so he was relatively alone.

Well, almost alone.

Sensing the intruder, a white blur flashed before him. He would have thought it was Hedwig, except he remembered where he was.

It was Ichigo's hollow self.

Instead of the black and white uniform, the colors were completely reversed.

Yoru was completely at ease, as he held up a two fingered salute and said "Yo."

The hollow-form grinned at him evilly.

"**You have a lot of balls coming here, kid."**

"Why thank you!" chirped Yoru. If nothing else he could annoy this spirit form.

The hollow-form scowled at him. Why wasn't he afraid?

"You know if we're going to have a talk, I'll need to know your name."

"**King hasn't given me one."**

"Would you mind if _I _gave you one?"

The hollow-form looked interested.

"How does Shirosaki sound?"

The newly named Shirosaki laughed...evilly.

"**Shirosaki isn't much of a name brat."**

"Shirosaki Mamoru."

That had Shirosaki sputtering. Of all the names he could have chosen, why did he have to go with one like Mamoru?

_**(Mamoru means 'Protect')**_

"**So why did you come in here anyway? How did you get in here?"**

"You know Ichigo and I share a bond. I followed that, since I was curious as to _who_ I kept hearing alongside Zangetsu and Ichigo."

Shirosaki looked surprised. This kid heard him?

"**You...heard me and the old man?"**

"I can hear _any_ Zanpakuto. You were just a mystery voice until now."

"**So what do you want?"**

"I was hoping to make a deal with you."

Shirosaki looked at him with interest.

"I can see if Ichigo would be willing to let you have control of his physical body every once in a while, in exchange for you helping him in his fights."

"**And what restrictions would I have?"**asked Shirosaki, interested. Ichigo's inner world was somewhat boring.

"No eating souls...well, except Moldy-shorts, since I could care less what happens to that bastard. And you would have to tone down some of your hollow impulses so the Soul Reapers don't get on your ass."

"**So Ichigo gets a power-up when he needs it and I get to leave this world for the outside?"** said Shirosaki.

It was a better deal than most would have given him.

"Do we have a bargain?"

Shirosaki's smirk, while terrifying, did give Yoru some relief.

"**I like the way you think, brat. You have a deal!"**

Before Yoru left Ichigo's inner world, he heard a parting shot from Shirosaki.

"**What's your name brat?"**

Yoru grinned mischievously.

"Yoru Shihouin. Also known as Yoru Kurosaki. Welcome to the family, Mamoru Shirosaki!"

He heard the hollow-form sputter in surprise as he opened his eyes.

* * *

Ichigo had been paying half attention to the whole conversation, and when Zangetsu let him rest for the day, he gave his brother a look.

"You're willing to let him take over my body?"

"Look, he _is _a part of you, whether you're willing to admit it or not. And he was able to see reason. There is no such thing as a black and white world, not even here."

"You're saying Shirosaki (he quirked his eyes in amusement at the name Yoru gave his hollow self) is better than some?"

"He may be a hollow. But he is better than Moldy-shorts or Dumbledore. So I'm willing to give him a shot. Are you?"

"Ask me later. Right now I need a breather. Zangetsu is a real taskmaster."

* * *

Ichigo tried to relax in the hot spring. Yoru was already curled up on one of the rocks, simply releasing the tension he had.

At least, until Yoruichi joined them in the buff.

"Mum, couldn't you put on a bathing suit or something?" he whined.

"And miss the shocked looks you two have? Not a chance. So how did your trip inside his world go?"

"I made a bargain so his hollow self wouldn't become a problem."

"Oh?"

"As long as I let him out every once in a while, he'll help me when I'm in over my head during a battle. Not sure how he'll help though."

"Probably do a partial manifest with his mask, scaring the crap out of anyone who tries to kill you," shrugged Yoru.

"And why aren't you training with me?" asked Ichigo.

"Because I don't know the first thing about learning Bankai, and I have no idea how it will turn out?"

"If I have to suffer through this hell, _you_ have to suffer," said Ichigo suddenly.

"I do have an extra doll," smirked Yoruichi.

"Evil..." shuddered Yoru.

Then it came to him. If nothing else he could learn one of Cheshire's attacks.

"Fine. But if I do this, then you can't have any payback for selling you to Zaraki."

"Deal!" said Ichigo.

* * *

Yoru didn't use a doll. He simply called Cheshire up as a Chain instead. The only downside was that he couldn't activate his sword while Cheshire was before him.

"You can train him however you like," said Yoruichi.

"Try not to kill me, alright?" asked Yoru.

Cheshire licked his claws. This was going to be fun!

Yoru dodged the first attack.

"_If you want to learn bankai...or anything else, then you must be able to manifest me without the sword,"_ said Cheshire, striking at Yoru with enthusiasm.

Yoru's eyes widened. That was going to be almost impossible!

Every time he dodged Cheshire, he also tried to figure out how to manifest claws.

Yoruichi, out of boredom, shifted to her animal form and took a nap. Yoru saw her, and an idea struck him.

Perhaps his animal form was something with claws? It was the best he could do at the moment.

He allowed himself to slip inside his inner world.

Which, for some reason, looked like Hogwarts. He raced out of his common room and tried to find something that would tell him what his animal form was.

It wasn't until he passed the Transfiguration room that he found a clue.

He should have thought to look there first.

Inside the room was an assortment of animal portraits. He went to touch one, but stopped.

Why did he have to settle for _one_animagus form? Where did the line stop? Could he had more than one, and have an advantage?

He heard a deep chuckle in the back of his mind.

He ignored it.

Instead he focused on the panther form first. He could work on the others later.

* * *

Cheshire wasn't surprised when Yoru grew claws. He was one of the Abyss' favorite toys. Ever since he gained Cheshire as a zanpakuto, most mortal limitations were removed.

Like the limit on how many transformations he could do. Yoru didn't know it, but ever since he first found his sword's name, he had become a metamorphamagus.

Since Yoru didn't know any of that, Cheshire intended to teach him.

Both of them knew that Yoru wasn't ready for his bankai. Not yet.

"_I have more abilities than just sneak attacks. You just haven't figured them out yet."_

Yoru concentrated on his claws. What can a cat do that other animals couldn't?

His ears shifted. His hearing had sharpened, yes. But that wasn't what Cheshire meant.

Cheshire's power as a Chain was crossing dimensions. What was his ability as a sword?

The first thing that came to mind when he thought of Cheshire's room was mirrors. Cheshire as a zanpakuto was a water type that tended to use mirrors to find his enemy and strike.

Mirrors.

It hit him.

Cheshire's power was reflection. But how could he use that to his advantage?

Cheshire struck again. He didn't stop while Yoru reflexively parried or dodged his attacks.

He had made them easy to counter on purpose, so the boy could learn without pausing. Yoru had gone inside himself to find the answer, but his body was learning to fight without thinking.

"A mirror!" said Yoru.

Cheshire smirked. He had figured out the riddle. If Cheshire's power as a chain was to cross worlds without blinking, then what power did he gain as part of a soul slayer?

"_You have a clue. My power is the ability to reflect attacks...and reveal the true form of an opponent. A zanpakuto can't hide their true self from the Abyss, which reflects madness and truth."_

"So if someone tried to use a zanpakuto with an illusion ability..."

"_Illusions are useless against me. My mirrors reflect everything. Past and Present. It would have the power to see the future, but you don't possess such an ability. So you can't use it that way."_

"Meh... who needs to see the future when the past can do more damage?" said Yoru, parrying another blow.

* * *

Yoruichi watched with amusement as he son tried to figure out his sword's attack. He was used to the sneak ability Cheshire possessed as a Chain...the question was, could he handle the shikai attack?

Ichigo went through fifty to sixty swords every three hours. Yoru had long since figured out what type of fighter Ichigo was. Ichigo, on the other hand, still didn't understand himself.

Yoru walked up to Zangetsu, bored.

"Yo, Oya-jii. Mind if I join in?"

"_This is a battle between the two of us. Don't interfere."_

"I wasn't planning on helping him beat you. I was planning on helping you teach him something he should have noticed ages ago."

Zangetsu gave him a look.

Yoru looked at his brother, bored.

"Ichigo. Has it ever occurred to you that you have a certain type of fighting style? I specialize in sneak attacks. You on the other hand..."

Ichigo looked at his brother.

"What about me?"

"You're similar to Zaraki. The only difference between the two of you is that Zaraki can't activate his sword. While you sword is permanently in an active state. Now think. What type of fighter is Zaraki?"

"_Why are you interfering?"_ asked Zangetsu.

Cheshire appeared, and growled.

"_He's having more trouble learning my true abilities as a sword. Perhaps fighting someone like Ichigo would speed things up."_

Zangetsu didn't look too happy about that, but he said nothing.

"_Besides, this will give your wielder more experience against sudden attacks."_

Zangetsu admitted Ichigo _was_ lacking in that area. And with Byakuya's sword, he would need more experience.

After that, Ichigo had to fight two people at once. Zangetsu and Yoru.

Eventually Yoruichi got tired of the tag teaming, and dragged Yoru off to fight her. Zangetsu wouldn't admit this, but he was glad she took him away.

Now he could fight Ichigo in earnest, even though Yoru never once got in the way of one of his attacks.

* * *

It took Yoru four days to figure out the name of Cheshire's attack. And another two to be able to wield it on command.

During that time, Renji of Squad Six joined them to get his Bankai ready.

By the time Ichigo and Renji managed that, it was almost too late. Rukia's execution was scheduled for noon the next day, and they would have to be ready.

Rukia stood there waiting to die. Ichigo had not come. Yoru hadn't been seen since he attacked Byakuya near the cell. Even Renji hadn't shown up.

Her only wish was that the captains would let the ryoka return home unharmed.

She stared into the face of her own death and her only thoughts were of the fact that she had ruined Ichigo's life.

She didn't have any regrets, save that.

The flames before her made her realize her life was truly about to end. She stared into the phoenix, unafraid to die.

But before it could pierce her soul, it stopped. Something was blocking it!

She opened her eyes to see... Ichigo?

"Yo. Rukia."

"Ichigo!"

The phoenix backed up to attack again...only to be bound. Ukitake wasn't going to let his subordinate die without a fight.

Yoru grinned as he blocked the 2nd captain Soi Fon.

"Who are you?" she demanded.

Yoru grinned. He had just stopped her from hurting Ukitake's little helpers.

"My name...is Yoru Shihouin. And I am Yoruichi's adopted son."

Her look of shock was quickly masked by a look of utter fury. She went to attack, only to be knocked out of the way by Yoruichi herself!

"Yo, Soi Fon."

"Yoruichi!"

"Ne, Ichigo. Mind if I have some fun with a traitor?"

Ichigo spared him a glance.

"Go for it. Just don't die."

* * *

Yoru appeared in a place full of dead bodies. They were at least a month old.

He stood there when the captain of Squad ten arrived.

"Yo."

"Who are you?"

"Yoru Shihouin, son of Yoruichi. I just got here myself," said Yoru, waving a hand.

Toshiro said nothing but still looked at the bodies.

"This blood is to dry for you to have killed them."

"Naturally. I wouldn't waste my time killing the Central 46 when I could just annoy Byakuya."

"Why are you here?" asked Rangiku.

"Because I didn't want to be bored while everyone else fought. Ichigo is facing Byakuya, Ukitake and Kyoraku are fighting the Soutaichi, and Yoruichi is resolving a few issues with her former lieutenant. I'd do more good here than anywhere else."

They said nothing, though both went after Kira.

"Idiots. Can't they tell a diversion when they see it?"

Yoru walked out of the death chamber into another room. He was just in time to see Hinamori of Squad Five being stabbed.

Aizen looked at him amused.

"Are you here to help?"

"You? Absolutely not. I don't deal with traitors," said Yoru with disgust and loathing.

Ever since he learned _how_ his parents died, his patience with those who betray others was gone. He knew full well that was the reason he was no longer friends with Ron Weasly.

Aizen smile didn't fool him for a second. The sound of swords striking each other was heard clearly when Toshiro returned.

"Your false persona won't deceive me."

Before Aizen could activate his sword, Yoru beat him to it.

"_See through the Looking Glass, Cheshire Neko!"_

His claws lengthened, and his eyes became cat shaped in appearance. Yoru could see right through Aizen's illusion with ease. Which was why he enjoyed the look of complete surprise as he dodged the sneak attacks made by the zanpakuto.

Toshiro was right by Hinamori's side. He looked pissed.

"Ne, Toshiro-kun. Would you like to join me in kicking his ass?"

Toshiro looked like he wanted nothing more than to kill Aizen. He nodded slightly, and Yoru vanished.

He reappeared beside the white haired boy.

"Why don't we teach this filthy traitor to play nice?" he purred.

"_Reign over the frosted heavens, Hyorinmaru!"_

Toshiro activated his ice type sword. The very air gained a chill. Fortunately, after all those years in England, Yoru was more than used to the frosty temperatures.

"Let's have some fun, Toshiro-kun," smirked Yoru, licking his claws.


	9. Chapter 9

Toshiro was amazed at how Yoru managed to see through Aizen's illusions fast enough to stop him from attacking. Nevertheless, he continued to strike at what he thought was Aizen. Finally, Yoru had enough playing games.

"_Reap through the mirrored gaze, Cheshire!"_

Aizen looked very surprised to have his attacks sent back at him.

"My power...is the ability to see through illusion and send it back. You were doomed the minute you activated your sword," purred Yoru.

Suddenly Toshiro gasped in pain, as Gin stabbed him from behind.

"Toshiro-kun!"

Aizen smirked. But before he could act on the momentary distraction, he felt something appear.

It was a cat...and a human.

"Cheshire, you deal with Aizen. I'll make sure Toshiro-kun and Hinamori-san survive."

"_You are such a troublesome master."_

"Yare yare."

Yoruichi, in her foresight, had taught Yoru a few healing Kido along with the ones that did damage. He was putting them to the test as he poured his energy into saving the two soul reapers.

Unseen by either of them, another captain appeared.

Captain Retsu Unohana, leader of squad four.

She saw what Yoru was doing, and instead focused on Aizen and Gin.

Too bad they had other ideas.

* * *

"Hello, Yoru-san," said Unohana pleasantly. She had been there when he carried Ikkaku to her barracks.

"Konnichiwa, Unohana-taicho," said Yoru without looking up.

"Isane, would you alert the others about what we just learned?"

"Hai, Unohana-taicho!"

Unohana helped Yoru heal them. Much to her surprise, Yoru had a knack for healing. The wound Toshiro had wasn't as deep.

"I'm impressed. There are few who could handle this level of healing."

"I'm a madoushi. Magic like this comes naturally to me," replied Yoru calmly. Now that Toshiro was out of danger, he went to go help the girl. Instead, Unohana took care of her.

"A madoushi with healing powers?"

"A madoushi who was killed over a decade ago and only recently awakened his Shinigami powers. Yoruichi was a good teacher."

Unohana healed Hinamori, before she activated her bankai.

"If you don't mind, Unohana-taicho, I shall assist my brother in protecting Rukia," said Yoru, bowing his head politely.

Unohana may scare most soul reapers, but not Yoru. He was just naturally polite, so Unohana liked him.

"I will be with you shortly, when this is all over."

Yoru nodded politely, and vanished.

* * *

Aizen appeared after Ichigo and Byakuya finished their fight. Right at that moment, Tousen appeared with Renji and Rukia in tow.

Yoru waited until he was needed, before he reappeared on Souyokyo hill.

"Mah, mah Ichigo. Need a paw?"

"Can it Yoru. I'm tired enough from that fight, I don't need an argument with you on top of it!" growled his brother.

Yoru evened the tide for them. But even he couldn't prevent Aizen from taking what Urahara had hidden inside Rukia.

Things were at a standstill until without warning, Aizen, Gin, and Tousen were enveloped in a yellow light.

It seemed everything had finally fallen into place, because the entire hill was full of captains and their lieutenants. Including the soutaicho.

Aizen revealed his true self as he destroyed his glasses. He no longer had any need to hide.

* * *

Ichigo watched with amusement as his brother fought against Soi Fon.

In order for him to join the Squad that best fit him, he had to at least tie with the current captain.

That was the rule she had set. Yoruichi watched it all with amusement, since she was the one who originally trained him. Whatever issues between Soi Fon and her were taken care of.

And her adoption of Yoru had become official in the eyes of the Soul Society, so his claim was now valid.

Suddenly Yoru vanished and reappeared behind Soi Fon. His claws were at her throat, and if he moved forward he would skewer her.

She smirked.

"You're good kid."

"She taught me well," grinned Yoru.

Soi Fon grinned. She liked this kid. Not only was he polite, but his ability was perfect for her squad.

"Alright, I suppose you can join us."

Yoruichi laughed.

"I told you he was a natural!"

Yoru grinned. He could see Soi Fon still liked Yoruichi.

"Ne, Cheshire! Looks like we made it!"

Cheshire appeared at his side, amused.

"_Naturally. Like I would let a hornet kill me."_

The look of shock on Soi Fon's face was highly amusing. Her shock only grew when Alyss appeared.

"_Yoru~ Come play with us!"_

"Alright, Alyss-chan. Who's going to join us?"

"_Yachiru and Rukia! They promised to play!"_

"Why...is he friends with _her_?" asked Soi Fon weakly.

"His sword is one of _her_ Chains. So he can manifest it whenever he likes and still attack. Besides, so long as he keeps her happy, the Chains won't come through."

"And the Commander-General is _okay_ with this?" Soi Fon asked shocked.

"It's more along the lines of the fact that even if he wanted to do something, he couldn't. She _is_ a being of power after all. Besides, Alyss has yet to do anything destructive when she's with him."

Soi Fon couldn't believe the kid had managed to attract _her_ attention.

Yoru laughed as he ran alongside Alyss. Rukia and Yachiru were already waiting for them.

"So what are we going to play today?" he asked, amused.

* * *

Yoru stood before the lieutenant of Squad two, annoyed. The man was a braggart, and he was loud.

"Urusai, fatass. Your noise hurts my ears," growled Yoru.

"Do you have any idea who I am?" sneered Omaeda.

Soi Fon was watching the exchange with amusement. What her lieutenant wasn't aware of was that if he challenged Yoru and _lost, _the boy was allowed to take over his spot.

She really, really hoped he challenged him. He was a nuisance that she couldn't get rid of without repercussions.

"Could care less. All I know is that you're noisy, obnoxious, fat as hell and ugly to boot."

He threw a punch, which Yoru caught with ease. The man was slow as well.

"Is that the best you can do?" asked Yoru, amused.

Omaeda growled, and said loudly "I challenge you to a duel! If I win, then you have to leave this squad!"

Soi Fon cheered inwardly. There was absolutely no chance in hell the fat ass would be able to beat him! Plus she wasn't the only one who heard his declaration.

"Fine. If _I _beat you, then I get your spot."

The man was a braggart _and_ an idiot. He accepted the terms without question.

Soi Fon was grinning outright. Finally, _finally_ she could put him in a position his skill deserved. As one of the lowest ranking officers!

Omaeda pompously stood before the crowd. Several of Squad two was eager to have him put in his proper place. The Second squad was designed for stealth, not a giant elephant who trumpets loudly!

Yoru stood before him calmly. Any attack the fatass tried would be sent back, and even then he could always use Cheshire to scare the living hell out of him.

Plus he had already figured out that he could go between the world of the living and the soul society _without_ using any of their normal tricks.

It would make going between the two so much easier than he originally thought.

The fat shinigami activated his sword, and Yoru did the same. Soi Fon watched with amusement as Omaeda has his ass handed to him several times over.

Finally, Yoru quit playing with the man and pinned him under his spiritual pressure. Thanks to the boost he received from Ichigo (particularly when he learned Bankai), it was as strong as a captain's.

Soi Fon walked up to the two with a grin she couldn't hide.

"Winner, Shihouin Yoru!"

Yoru bowed politely to her, and got off the other shinigami.

Since Omaeda had declared loudly enough for most of the squad to hear, he reluctantly gave Yoru his badge.

And the best part was that he had only himself to blame for loosing his rank.

* * *

"Wait, so you're the same rank as Renji?" said Ichigo in surprise.

"The fat ass challenged me and lost. And he set the terms that if I beat him I got his spot. Everyone heard him, so no one complained."

"So what happens now? Are you going to stay here...?" asked Orihime.

"Apparently my power to disappear and reappear also applies to the soul society. I can come and go as I please, provided I do my paperwork and show up to meetings on time," grinned Yoru.

It seemed Yoru was already well liked in his new squad. Even if he did gain his status in a rather unusual manner. (I/E through a bet.)

Once everyone was rested and recovered from their ordeal, it was time to go home.

Something Yoru was not looking forward to at all.

They had to run like hell, because their timing once again, sucked. They had gone through the gate during the time the cleaner was making it's rounds through the portal. Something that had Yoru cursing.

"Is it just me, or did they deliberately send us through when that thing was around?" whined Yoru.

"Probably payback for the damage we caused," said Ichigo.

They finally came out of the tunnel...only to realize with horror that they were in midair.

"Bloody hell!" yelped Yoru.

Fortunately, Urahara was waiting.

* * *

Yoru quickly grew used to going between the worlds. His body soon switched places the second he touch the ground.

Much to his own shock, Soi Fon actually praised him often. She was thrilled to have him as her lieutenant, even if the captain general wasn't too happy as to how he got that post.

Still, at least Yoru did his paperwork (and the rather large amount of backlog that Omaeda left behind) on time.

No one actually complained about Yoru.

He did his paperwork, reported to his captain in a timely manner, and trained like mad. He never allowed himself to get distracted during a fight.

Omaeda seemed to think the kid was _too_ perfect.

* * *

Tatsuki was worried. Ever since summer vacation Orihime seemed to be hiding something. And she was afraid to lose her best friend.

Everyone seemed to be different. Her main concern was that the mystery transfer girl, Rukia, never came back.

So she confronted the only person she believed would give her a straight answer.

"Yoru, what happened to Rukia?"

Yoru's look of surprise confirmed her suspicions.

"She went home for the time being. Ichigo managed to keep her from getting into trouble. I'm amazed you noticed she was missing."

"I remember...that weird shape that attacked Orihime and me. But everything after that is a blank."

"What would you do if you knew the truth? I have to warn you...once you step foot into this world there is no going back. Not without a fight."

"I don't care. I want to protect Orihime."

Yoru smiled. And held out his hand.

"If you truly wish to see beyond the looking glass, take my hand. I will show you everything you need to know. And help you find your way."

Tatsuki looked unsure...but she took his hand anyway. Yoru's face didn't waver as he lead her to a spot where he knew a hollow would appear.

Tatsuki gasped. The thing was a monster!

"That...is a hollow. A fallen spirit that wasn't guided to the next world properly. The regular souls you see every day are what _they_ used to be."

"Those things...used to be human?"

Yoru nodded. He had switched between his human form into his soul reaper outfit.

"I...am a soul reaper. So is Ichigo. My job is to guide these spirits into the next world. And to take care of hollows before they kill people."

Yoru destroyed the hollow with ease. It wasn't a big threat.

"Tatsuki...are you truly prepared to enter this world?"

"Does Orihime know?" she asked.

"Orihime was with us when we rescued Rukia. She has already come far in controlling her own powers. But her attack strength is sorely lacking."

Tatsuki firmed her resolve. If Orihime knew, then there was no way she was backing out now.

"What do I need to do?" she asked.

Yoru smiled wider.

* * *

Yoru kept Orihime from running after Ichigo. There wasn't any need for them to skip class.

"Orihime-chan, can I talk to you in private?" he asked.

She followed him to the roof, where Tatsuki was waiting.

"Tatsuki?"

"She knows. She just needed someone to guide her into the world she was always aware of."

Orihime looked confused.

"Orihime-chan, when we were in the soul society, you lost your main method of attack."

The girl said nothing.

"I can understand why you didn't tell her. She wasn't ready to face what we went through. But, now that we have a bit of downtime, you can help her learn how to focus her powers."

"Tatsuki..."

Tatsuki was smiling. She didn't want to lose her best friend when she could have done something to help.

"Fortunately, there is a place where she can hone those powers without being in any real danger. The only question is what sort of ability she has."

"Where are you taking her?"

Yoru grinned.

"The Abyss."

The wind blew silently... Orihime had heard things about that place from Rukia. It was a nightmarish void full of dangerous monsters called Chains.

"I won't let Tatsuki die, Orihime. Besides, she wants to get stronger."

"Why Tatsuki?"

"I don't want to lose you."

Orihime looked surprised.

"You've gotten stronger since you left. I just don't want to be left behind if you got hurt and I couldn't help."

"Tatsuki, are you ready?"

"I'm ready."

Yoru clawed open a portal. Orihime wanted to stop them...but found that she couldn't.

"Tell Ichigo we'll be back in a week."

She watched as they vanished from the world of the living.

* * *

Tatsuki didn't run. Her opponent was one of the weakest Chains around. A Trump.

Her martial arts skills came in handy here. While Alyss and Yoru watched her grow stronger, they also kept time in check. Alyss was the master of the Abyss...a place where time truly didn't factor.

She could spend years here and pop out minutes after she left. Or spend days only to find decades had passed.

She threw a left hook, and damaged the chain. Her spiritual pressure had grown in leaps and bounds since coming here. Yoru had explained that the soul grew stronger when it was in real danger.

The Chain howled...and went to eat her. Her right foot crushed it's skull in.

Even though her reitsu had grown stronger, she still didn't know what her power was.

Her only thought was of protecting Orihime from danger.

Suddenly she was flying. A chain had snuck up behind her and had attacked.

She felt one of her ribs break. Her anger grew at the sneak attack, and she threw a punch. She missed, and felt her arm about to snap.

She was in pain. And if the thing wounded her again she might be finished for good.

She was so desperate to live that her ability awoke on it's own to save her.

Midnight black armor surrounded her. She looked like one of those magical girls that Orihime liked to watch so much, only her outfit wasn't nearly as tacky.

Instead of the typical skirt, she had knee-long leggings. Her chest was protected by black plating, but she still showed some skin. Her stomach was left unprotected, but around it was a pair of chains. Her shoes were now the kind favored by fighters, that gave really good tracking while running. On her arms were bandages in a strange script she didn't recognize.

The only concession to being a female that she could see was a thing strip of metal on her forehead. It looked like something one off of the elven princesses she saw on Orihime's anime. There was a large lilac jewel in the center.

She clenched her fist, and destroyed the Chain in one blow.

The last thing she remembered was a room full of dolls and Yoru looking concerned.

* * *

Orihime opened the door to see Yoru. He was carrying Tatsuki.

"Yo, Orihime-chan. Tatsuki overdid it a bit."

The girl looked like she had stayed up too many nights.

Orihime didn't hesitate with her powers.

"_Soten Kishun, I reject!"_

The two flowers enveloped Tatsuki, healing her injuries.

"I thought it was a better idea to take her straight to you so you could see how well she did," said Yoru.

Orihime didn't like the fact that Tatsuki got badly hurt, but at least she could heal her.

"How bad was it?"

"It took her a while to get used to the monsters, but after that she managed pretty well. If it hadn't been for that sneak attack we would still be in training."

Tatsuki sat up when the healing took effect. Once it was over she was immediately tackled by Orihime.

"I'll leave you guys here. Soi Fon-taicho is likely to have my head as it is!"


	10. Chapter 10

Soi Fon wasn't happy, but she didn't get on his case too bad. Especially when she learned _why_ he had been missing for a week.

"So this girl needed training?"

"She was already aware of ghosts and somewhat aware of hollows. I just spelled out her options."

"I assume she managed to get her powers working?" asked Soi Fon.

"Hai. Once her soul realized how much danger it was really in, it reacted very quickly. All she really needed was incentive to survive."

Soi Fon said nothing, and the matter was more or less dropped. Well, except for when Kenpachi learned of Yoru's little training trick and begged to use it on those who were still rather weak.

All Yoru did was innocently mention that he would need Alyss' permission first, and soon there was a rather minor issue of soul reapers suddenly going missing for days on end.

Needless to say the other captains weren't too happy about that.

(Though there was an interesting problem when Kurotsuchi ran into Alyss. The girl immediately disliked the man, and made a point to annoy the living hell out of him every time she was in a bad mood.)

* * *

Yoru was so caught up in keeping his life together that he failed to notice the goings on in Karakura. The only time he did pay attention to the town or the spirits were the times he ran with Shirosaki.

Ichigo decided to go with the lesser of two evils, and let his Hollow self run around causing havoc through pranks. Apparently Shirosaki fell in love with the twins, and they adored his rather crazy nature.

The cops were on the look out for the one they called "The White Demon of Karakura", which had Yoru laughing his ass off when he learned.

There was another prankster on the loose, but the cops really, really hoped the two didn't team up.

* * *

Shirosaki grinned as Yoru held up the cans. Unlike the twins, Yoru knew all about muggle pranks.

Yoru knew full well that Ichigo was cheering them on from his soul room. Even Zangetsu was grinning.

By morning, the two had managed to prank the entire high school, from the classrooms to the water closets. Every room was hit hard.

Yoru was grinning like a loon, as he said "Can't wait to see the results."

"**Neither can I. Was I too subtle for them?"**

"What, you mean with that note on _every_ chalkboard in the school?" snickered Yoru.

Ichigo switched with Shirosaki, who went to plot what to do next time.

"Oh man, I can't wait to see their faces!" snickered Ichigo.

"Can you imagine the look on Uryu's face when he sits on his chair?"

"Oh man is he going to be mad," said Ichigo, cackling.

Rukia slid the door open, wondering what had them cackling so evilly.

Some time during the past three weeks, Rukia had returned. Yoru had no issue with her being there. Of course he made sure to at least make it a bit more comfortable...so he added an expansion charm to make it a bit bigger.

* * *

Tatsuki grinned when she learned of Yoru's traps. And warned the rest of the gang. During the time she unlocked her powers, Tatsuki had caught up to the rest of them. Her power levels had grown since Alyss gave her an all access pass to the Abyss for training.

Yoru wondered how long it would be before someone ended up being contracted with a Chain.

Orihime, when she learned that Tatsuki joined them solely so she wouldn't be left behind, decided to hang behind so she could focus on defense and healing.

It was for the best, since her little faerie was only good for some of the minor hollows.

"So basically avoid those areas if we don't want to get hit?"

Chad didn't know what to think about Ichigo's prankster side. Or the fact that he willingly let his hollow self loose.

"Don't tell Uryu. We left him a surprise on his chair."

"What did you leave him?" asked Tatsuki conspiratorially.

Yoru smirked.

"Ever heard of a whoopie cushion?"

Tatsuki cackled.

"With an added prank!" snickered Ichigo.

The gang walked into the classroom...and it was pure pandemonium. Several of the girls now had blue and red hair, the boys hair turned pink. Silly string was hanging one everyone, and the teachers looked like they wanted to cry.

Ichigo tried not to grin when he saw the blackboard.

Shirosaki felt the need to announce the fact he had struck. It would take days to clean up the mess he left.

"_**The White Devil was here!"**_

Yoru barely kept from snickering.

The minute Rukia dared to sit down at her chair, there was a loud 'pop' sound. Everyone stared at the new ears she had on her head. She had a perfect pair of black rabbit ears on her head.

Uryu, when he sat down, turned red as a tomato...because he sat on the hidden whoopie cushion with stink pellets in it. Tatsuki tried very, very hard to keep a straight face.

She didn't manage it that well, because she was still grinning evilly.

Since the school was hit, they had to cancel all the classes until the pranks were taken out.

It would take two weeks before they found the last prank. Even then, the teachers were still paranoid that they had missed some.

* * *

"Hold up. You mean to tell me the reason the Soul Society looks like we hit it again...is because of Uryu?" said Yoru.

"He fell for the one person who could give them a power up, and managed to fail at protecting her," said Ichigo.

"Okay, now I don't feel sorry for that whoopie cushion prank. Tell him if he does this again, he's doing the repair paperwork in triplicate."

"You...have to do paperwork?"

"I'm a lieutenant. Part of Squad Two was damaged from those...what did you call them again?"

"Bounts."

"Anyway, Soi Fon-taicho left _me_ to do the repair paperwork. And they have to be signed in triplicate, and then copied. It's a total pain in the ass."

"What about the costs?"

"That, at least, isn't my problem. Every squad gets a repair budget, and it _should_ cover it."

"You guys have a repair budget?"

Yoru grinned.

"You wouldn't believe how much Squad Eleven usually pays for repairs each month."

"I've met Kenpachi. I can believe they have massive bills."

"That reminds me. It seems Kenpachi wants to test out Shirosaki. Mind letting him loose?"

Ichigo laughed evilly.

"Oh, I think we should arrange that. It'll curb his more nasty tendencies for a while."

Kenpachi, when he learned that Ichigo was going to let him fight Shirosaki, was very happy.

* * *

Once told that Kenpachi was going to fight someone who could actually match him, the people who repaired everything decided to avoid Squad Eleven until the fight was over.

(Basically they told him to try and keep it in his Squad.)

Yoru, in the spirit of mischief, was out selling snacks for the spectators. Shirosaki was already out, and ready to fight Kenpachi.

"Yo Shirosaki! I'll give ya a cut of the profits!" shouted Yoru.

Shirosaki grinned, and gave him a victory sign.

Kenpachi laughed, and started the fight with a bang.

Swords clashed, spirit energy went wild, and Yoru was selling snacks.

"Hey Yoru, we have two orders of cupcakes over here!" Yachiru shouted.

"_Two bottles of sake over here!"_ said Alyss.

"Cheshire, you take the sake, I'll handle the cakes."

Yoru sold over a hundred cupcakes (much to his surprise it was considered a western treat, so no one in the Soul Society had eaten them before) and well over a thousand sake bottles.

When he counted up the cash he managed to earn, it was over four times what he got as a lieutenant!

And a third of it was Shirosaki's.

"That does it. I am _so_ opening a side shop for baked goods!" grinned Yoru.

Yoruichi, who had helped him count the cash, smirked.

"You would be the wealthiest bachelor in the Soul Society if you did."

"Like I'm not already?" snorted Yoru.

Yoruichi grinned fiercely.

"How many?"

"How many _what_, Mum?"

"How many girls have come up to you?"

"Oh that. Actually none."

Yoruichi didn't looked one bit convinced.

"I had enough idiots after my fame, money or looks. So I have the perfect defense system."

"What?"

Yoru smirked. She had walked right into his joke.

"Alyss has to approve of them to get close."

She raised an eyebrow.

"And how many females have gotten past her?"

"Rukia, Yachiru, Isane, Unohana, Soi Fon, Tatsuki, Orihime, Yuzu, Karin, Rangiku, and you."

Yoruichi gave him a look.

"Every single one of those girls is either a friend or not at all interested in you except as a colleague."

"Exactly!" crowed Yoru.

"That does it. I am helping you get a girlfriend if it kills me."

Yoru groaned. This would not end well.

* * *

Yoru was on duty in Karakura. The other soul reaper simply wasn't getting there fast enough.

So far, Yoru was having absolutely no luck of it. It took him a week to figure out why the hollows disappeared before he could get to them.

Finally, he waited in one spot and leaked enough spirit energy for a hollow to appear.

In five minutes, three appeared. And in less than two minutes, he found the source of the problem.

Karin, Jinta and that bizarre weirdo Kanoji killed the hollow.

"Bloody Hell! Do you lot have any idea what a headache you've been causing?" swore Yoru. His British accent was noticeable.

"Hey Yoru-nii. What are you doing here?" asked Karin.

"The current idiot in charge of this town was complaining that every time he went to kill hollows they were already gone. Said someone was dealing with them before he got there. Caused a bit of a problem."

"What sort of problem?" asked Kanoji.

Yoru pinched his nose.

"Every time we kill hollows, we usually get paid for it. You guys are making it difficult to do our job."

"What, so we're supposed to let you guys get there late?" said Jinta.

"No. Tell you what. If you guys let us at least try to do our jobs, I will train you myself. I've already gotten Tatsuki up to speed."

* * *

"You _what?_" Ichigo nearly shrieked.

"Karin is already aware of the damn things, and since we went to the Soul Society the four of them have been dealing with the hollows. None of the big ones, but the regular ones that tend to pop up. Now we can either let them continue on like they have and get killed, or we can take time out of our day to train them and at least know they will put up one hell of a fight before dying."

Ichigo didn't like it one bit.

"Or...we could have Isshin train them and hope he doesn't screw it up."

"My dad? Are you kidding me?"

Yoru looked at him in disbelief.

"You mean you didn't know?"

"Know what?"

"Ichigo...the one who asked Yoruichi to train me was your _dad_. I'm fairly sure he's a retired soul reaper."

Ichigo looked at him like he was crazy.

"My dad...a soul reaper?"

Yoru snickered.

"Oh come on. You got all that bloody power from somewhere. May as well be your dad."

"I won't believe it unless I see it," said Ichigo.

"Right then. I know a way to prove it and have a bit of fun."

Ichigo followed Yoru into the back room where his dad was stocking up on supplies. There was no one else there. Yoru grinned, and silently cleared his throat.

What happened next would crack Ichigo up every time he thought about it.

"_I believe the marzipan goes on the third shelf, Isshin-san."_

Yoru did a perfect imitation of Captain Unohana's voice.

Isshin froze like a statue, and slowly turned his head in fear. Only to find a gaping Ichigo and a laughing Yoru.

"I told you, didn't I?" chuckled Yoru.

"I don't believe it."

It took quite a bit of convincing for Ichigo to believe Isshin was a former soul reaper. And that his old man knew about his new job the entire time.

Yoru of course, found the whole thing hilarious.

"Can you imagine Karin's face when she finds out!" he snickered.

"How did you know anyway?" asked Isshin.

"Yoruichi told me you asked her to train me, and unlike Ichigo I do have some skill in sensing spiritual energy."

"You could have picked someone else's voice!" whined Isshin.

Ichigo snickered...though he fully understood his father's fear of the woman. Unohana could be quite scary.

"So why did you leave anyway?" asked Yoru.

Isshin hoped they wouldn't laugh.

"Fan girls."

They stared.

"You left the soul society...because of fan girls?" asked Ichigo in disbelief.

Yoru on the other hand, shuddered.

"I hate fan girls."

Isshin agreed to teach Karin, in exchange for not informing his still active fan club as to _where_ he was. (Yoru loved blackmail.)

* * *

Tatsuki was laughing.

"You blackmailed your own dad into teaching your sisters how to use their natural powers?" she crowed.

"Oh, that's not the best part," grinned Yoru.

Rukia, Yachiru, Tatsuki and Soi Fon were all having tea with Alyss. Dealing with sane people was having a good effect on the girl, because fewer people ran away screaming from her.

"Isshin ran away because he was _terrified_ of his fan club...not that I blame him one bit."

"Why would anyone be afraid of a fan club?" asked Rukia.

Yoru smirked.

"Imagine your brother's fan club going to _any_ lengths to be with him. Even breaking into your house. Now imagine that problem only growing worse the more he tries to escape."

Soi Fon snorted.

"Or worse, Yoruichi's fan boys coming after her in droves and her not being able to escape with flash step," said Yoru.

Soi Fon actually growled at that.

"So how exactly is he going to train them?" asked Tatsuki.

"_I gave him permission to use the weakest level of the Abyss. The stronger they get, the lower they can descend. I highly doubt that they would make it to my level though,"_ said Alyss, sipping her earl gray.

Soi Fon gave the two of them a look.

"You do realize that the other captains are complaining about their squads going missing?" she said.

"Is it _my_ fault Zaraki gets so bored he chucks them in here? At least now we have more people able to use Shikai," said Yoru.

"I heard the Commander-General is actually going to give _Shirosaki_ full permission to spar with Zaraki every week to see if he quits chasing people for fights," said Rukia.

Yoru chuckled.

"In that case, I had better hire some people to help me cook. And some extra waiters."

"Why?" asked Tatsuki.

"Last time they fought, I sold enough food and drink that I had over four times what I make as a lieutenant here," grinned Yoru.

"What _did_ you do with all that money anyway?"

"Gave Shirosaki a third, then gave the rest to the twins. It went towards Karin and Yuzu's college fund."

They finished their tea and went about their day. Much to the horror of the other soul reapers, Alyss tended to hang around Rukia or Yachiru most days.

It was a source of amusement to them both, because they found it fun to hide Alyss among things only to pop out without warning.

The sight of an insane rabbit who acted as a conduit to a realm governed by madness was usually enough to scare the soul reapers silly.


	11. Chapter 11

Ichigo was bored, and he was starting to _hate_ the combat pass Ukitake gave him. The thing shrieked every time a hollow appeared, but he wouldn't _dare_ think of allowing Shirosaki in control.

Not that he could anyway. They were two parts of the same soul, so even if he wanted to, he had no idea how to go about it.

At least, until Yoru found an odd article and mentioned it to Ichigo.

"Dopplegangers? We studied those a couple of..."

An idea struck him.

"Ichigo? Why do you have an evil look on your face?" asked Yoru worried.

"I was just thinking...maybe I could give Shirosaki his own body. Temporarily at least..."

"You mean with a doppelganger body? It might work...but you two are one and the same."

"I know. Can you help me research it?"

"I have a better idea. Ask the twins."

The next morning was a Sunday, so the two headed to see Fred and George.

Their joke shop had become so successful, that they were opening branch shops in almost every continent. Rumor had it they were almost rich enough to buy out Zonko's.

"Yoru, Ichigo! How lovely to see you!" said Fred.

"Have you come to fill our capitalistic void?" said George.

"Nope. We came to ask if either of you knew about doppelgangers," said Yoru grinning.

"Of course we do!"

"How else could we avoid dear ol' Mum when she's on a rant?" asked George.

Ichigo explained about giving Shirosaki his own body. The two looked intrigued, and agreed to see what they could do.

* * *

Two weeks later a new student arrived, and the twins sent them an owl. Apparently they had a breakthrough thanks to Urahara.

There was only one problem with the body...

"It doesn't have any spiritual power...at all?"

"Urahara said he didn't want Shirosaki going on a rampage with your reitsu. Something about you being too strong to fight against."

"Is that all?" asked Yoru. He had an idea about that.

They nodded.

"Now to put Shirosaki in there..."

Ichigo had no idea how to go about this. Until Yoru took his glove (it had an owl on it) and threw a punch at Ichigo.

Instead of Ichigo coming out as a shinigami, Shirosaki appeared. Ichigo stared.

"How the hell did you...?"

Yoru showed him his glove. It was on inside out.

"I figured if one side could shove a soul reaper out, then reversing it would bring out the hollow," shrugged Yoru.

Shirosaki grinned insanely.

"You know what that is. Get in. And if I hear you've been on a rampage I _will_ sick Alyss on you. She has a crush on you already," said Yoru.

The three others stared at him.

Shirosaki got into the body easily, and once in it moved. His insane grin was at least on par with a human's.

"_But what about my powers?" _asked Shirosaki.

"I have an idea about that. Ichigo, you have any problem with him hanging out with me today?"

"None at all. Have fun."

"It'll be interesting at the very least."

"Alright, since you are _technically_ a hollow, you should instinctively know how to get to their little world.

"_Now why would I want to do that?"_ asked Shiro.

"Because I have a sneaking suspicion that _you_ can get your own spirit power back up to Ichigo's level by eating other hollows. Like say, a Menos or higher?"

Shirosaki's grin became even more insane, if that was possible. Since neither of them had any clue _how_ to open a gate into the realm of hollows, they decided to ask Alyss to do it.

She had been around longer than they had.

"_Of course I can let you guys through...but you must do something for me first."_

"What?"

Alyss looked at Shirosaki, who gulped. Yoru had an idea what she wanted, and was more than happy to help her.

"You want to go on a date with him?" he asked.

Alyss nodded.

Shirosaki wanted to run, but Yoru had a firm grasp on his shirt.

"Now, now, Shiro. You want to get your spirit powers back or not?" grinned Yoru.

"_But neither of us has ever gone out!" _he whined.

"True, but from what I've heard, it's not that difficult. Besides, it's not like you two are complete opposites. You both love blood and are as insane as the human mind can tolerate."

Shirosaki looked unsure.

"Alyss is a wellspring of pranks. If nothing else the two of you can plot and execute them without me to stop you," Yoru deadpanned.

"_Even on Ichigo?"_

"Just leave me alone, and you can prank whoever you want."

"_Alyss, you have a deal!"_ grinned Shirosaki.

Their date ended up being known as the night of hell. No one was safe, except the youngest of children and those who were on their last legs. Ichigo was among those hardest hit.

On the plus side, Shirosaki learned he had more in common with Alyss than he thought. Yoru privately speculated that the two would end up becoming a couple before the year was out, if they continued on like that.

* * *

Yoru damaged the Menos, and had Shirosaki go in for the kill. The more he finished off the bigger hollows, the more his former spiritual power increased. It seemed Yoru was correct in assuming that Shirosaki had the ability to devour other hollow's powers.

Best of all, Urahara couldn't complain, because the only place Shirosaki went on a rampage was on Hollow territory.

If Yoru was right, the next time Shirosaki allowed Ichigo to manifest his mask, he would be in for a massive power boost.

Yoru normally wouldn't pay any attention to the new student...except he gave off a familiar vibe.

He was similar enough to Ichigo that he knew the boy would be trouble.

Ichigo felt Yoru tense, and spoke through their link. Even after all the changes that occurred between them, it was still strong as ever.

'Trouble?'

'For you, maybe. This guy has a vibe like yours.'

'Great...is it too much to ask for a peaceful break?'

Yoru snorted out loud. Only Ichigo and the new guy noticed.

'Ichigo, we aren't normal. At the very least, you lost that right when we swapped bodies for four years.'

Ichigo wanted to groan. Yoru was right, of course, but he didn't have to like it.

* * *

Once again, Yoru turned out to be correct. It seemed a group of soul reapers who gained their powers illegally had targeted Ichigo. They called themselves Vizards.

Once informed of the name, Ichigo had a hard time keeping a straight face in front of them. So did Yoru, who insisted on meeting them.

"What the hell is so funny about our name?" growled Hiyori, a girl with very violent tendencies.

"You do realize that the two of us are mages, and back in Europe they call those with magical potential _wizards,_" said Yoru, snickering.

"Anyway..."

Shinji outlined Ichigo's options, now that he had the powers of both a soul reaper _and_ a hollow.

Insanity, death, or worse, the hollow took complete control of his body.

Both brothers were silent, letting him finish. Then they looked at each other and started cracking up.

The two vizards didn't know _why_ the brothers found the facts so damn funny.

"So basically he has to come to you for training in order to get control of his inner hollow?" said Yoru, managing to get it out.

"Not unless you want his hollow breaking out and killing everyone you care about," said Shinji.

Ichigo grinned wider.

"Hey Shirosaki, what do you say about that?"

A white blur flew past the two Vizards. To their shock, a double of Ichigo appeared, only the colors were completely reversed.

"_I say it's a load of crap, King."_

"How...How the hell is your hollow side out?" said Hiyori in shock.

"Shirosaki isn't as bad as you want us to believe. Hell, we let him out every once in a while so he doesn't get bored," said Ichigo.

"How do you keep him under control?" asked Shinji.

"I don't. _He_ does," said Ichigo, nodding towards Yoru.

"I leave him in the realm of the hollows so he can get his more murderous tendencies out, and I help him prank people for the rest of his more insane urges. Plus there's his girlfriend, Alyss."

Ichigo sputtered. That was news to him!

The two vizards didn't know what to say. Normally people with hollows tried to control them in order to stay sane. Ichigo, however, allowed his to come out regularly and even considered him a friend.

"Anyway, while we appreciate the offer, I don't think we need to worry about Mamoru going out of control," said Yoru.

"Mamoru?"

"That's his name Shirosaki Mamoru. Haven't you guys ever watched _XXXHolic_?"

Seeing their confusion, Ichigo explained.

Once that was cleared up, Yoru thought things over. Perhaps they could help Shirosaki and Ichigo learn to cooperate more. At the very least they wouldn't die if Ichigo sparred with them.

"Maybe there is some merit to you working with them Ichigo..."

"What do you mean?"

"Well you and Shirosaki can only do a partial mask right now. Perhaps they can help the two of you sync up enough to pull off a full mask power up."

"_The King could use some more practice with it...It takes him a good three minutes to borrow my power, and it only lasts for a minute or so."_

Shinji looked relieved. Hiyori looked annoyed.

"Plus they can give me a better work out than anyone else. The only person who has been able to survive an attack from Cheshire full on is Zaraki."

* * *

Yoru was halfway to the park when he heard the explosion. He used shun po to get to the site before anyone else, and he stared.

Standing there were two hollows unlike any he had seen before...well...except for Shirosaki, but he rarely had his mask.

One was big and not very bright.

The other, however, made his stare. The guy could pass for him with a weird mask on the side of his face! Well, almost pass for him. The man before him had much paler skin, which was saying something.

Somehow, he knew they were trouble.

This fact was only proved true when the bigger one started _absorbing_ (he couldn't think of a better word for it) all the spiritual energy in the area. People fell to the ground, either dead or unconscious.

Tatsuki was among those who were barely standing.

Yoru ran up to her, and gave her enough of his own spirit energy that she wouldn't pass outright.

She stood, and glared at the two.

"This is not your fight Tatsuki," said Yoru, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Like hell it isn't! Those guys nearly knocked me out, and you expect me to sit here and do nothing?" she nearly shrieked at him.

Yoru wasn't offended by it, because he knew she was still rattled.

"Orihime would never forgive me if I stood by and watched you kill yourself."

Tatsuki conceded his point.

"Now, who the bloody hell are you and why are you attacking people unprovoked?" asked Yoru.

"I am Ulquiorra. This is Yammy."

"Arrancar?" asked Yoru.

He said nothing. But when Yammy went to strike at him, Yoru vanished with Tatsuki. He placed her inside Cheshire's world, where she would be safe.

Much to his surprise, these Arrancar proved to be as hard to kill as Zaraki. At the very least, he actually had to work at avoiding their attacks.

Fortunately for him, he had been training with his squad ever since he made lieutenant through that bet. He had never once believed that he wouldn't have to fight again, like Ichigo.

Unknown to anyone else, Yoru was very close to achieving Bankai. He just never had any real incentive to use it.

But when Ulquiorra attacked him alongside Yammy, he found a very pressing need to use it.

Yoru managed to jump into Cheshire's world...and began to focus his spiritual pressure into the mirrors. It hadn't taken long to figure out what his powers were. Or how to fully activate them properly.

His eyes began to glow in the darkness. The only light came from the emerald glow that surrounded him. Cheshire was ready to move to the next level, though they would have to train in order to perfect his two attacks in bankai stage.

"_Mislead our enemies through the mirrored maze, Kagami no Cheshire!"_

That was his first bankai that he learned. The second one had a much different effect.

Ulquiorra watched in shock as mirrors appeared everywhere. There wasn't a single space where his reflection didn't appear. The two Arrancar attempted to break them, only to have their attacks sent back.

Yoru looked more like his Chain than ever. Instead of both his green eyes showing, his bangs extended over his face. His outfit was a more sedate copy of Cheshire's, only instead of bells there were mirrors. One silver bright, the other pitch black. Only his right eye was visible.

He smirked.

"Once you enter my Looking Glass, you can never escape," said Yoru.

Yammy tried to blast him, but Yoru jumped into the mirror next to him and became nothing more than a reflection.

Yoru finally collapsed, tired, when Yoruichi and Urahara arrived with Ichigo. Ichigo had come earlier, but couldn't break into the bizarre mirror ball that had surrounded the Arrancar.

The two former captains drove them off. Ichigo picked up his brother, and wasn't bothered when Cheshire brought Tatsuki out of his lair.

* * *

When Yoru awoke, he found a very concerned Yoruichi, a confused Ichigo, and a curious Urahara staring at him.

"Ow...stupid limiter..."

"Yoru, what the hell was that thing?" asked Ichigo.

"One half of my Bankai."

"You can perform bankai?" asked Yoruichi.

"I've been able to since that whole bount nonsense. I just never saw the need to use it before now."

"Wait, did you say one _part_?"

"It has two different parts to it. One for enemies, one for allies."

"Can we see it?" asked Urahara, eager as a puppy.

"Fine. Cheshire told me I would need more practice with both aspects."

"So which side of the looking glass do you want to see first?"

Ichigo made his opinion known.

"Why not the one you used on those two arrancar bastards?"

Yoru shrugged.

He jumped into Cheshire's realm, and repeated the procedure. It came a little faster this time.

"_Mislead our enemies through the mirrored maze, Kagami no Cheshire!"_

Urahara, Ichigo and Yoruichi were all shocked to find themselves in a mirrored realm. Their reflections bounced off of countless tiny and large mirrors.

Yoru appeared, and they noted the change in his appearance.

"So do you want to spar or just have something else take the damage?" he purred.

Urahara's grin rivaled Shirosaki _and_ Alyss. He was a mad scientist through and through.

"_Awaken Benihime!"_

Yoruichi and Ichigo wisely stayed out of their way.

Yoru's mirror attack was very similar to his shikai trick. But with one key difference.

His opponent had a chance to see what direction he was coming from...though Urahara barely managed to block a quarter of his attacks.

Finally, Yoru let his mirror maze drop.

And nearly passed out from the sheer drain on his power. Normally he could shoot off kido and use his shikai attacks without a problem.

But he was so unused to his bankai that it wore him out. The only good thing was that he was still awake this time.

"What did you call that place?" asked Ichigo weakly.

"My looking glass maze. Seemed appropriate."

"What about the other half of your bankai?" asked Yoruichi, concerned.

Yoru looked at Urahara, who was not only panting hard, he was cut up pretty bad.

"Would you like to see the other half?" he asked sweetly.

"Is it anything like what you just put me through?" he asked.

"I have no idea. All I know is that I have a secondary bankai release, and haven't had a chance to use it yet."

"If it's anything like the last one, I'll be your partner," said Yoruichi.

This time Yoru stayed put. He placed his remaining spirit energy into his claws and said clearly...

"_Lead our allies through the mirrored maze, Kagami no Neko!"_

This time the reflections were solely on Yoru. His eyes were normal, and the only real difference in his outfit was Cheshire's scarf around his neck, mirrors and all. His hair covered his left eye this time.

A warm green light shot out of the mirrors onto Urahara, and when they faded everyone stared.

It seemed that like Orihime, Yoru could reverse any damage done, even if he was the one to inflict it. The blood on his clothes was completely gone, and his energy was back to normal levels, though he wouldn't be using his shikai anytime soon.

Once the damage was reversed, Yoru let his secondary bankai go. And passed out from using too much of his energy.

Ichigo was at his side in a heartbeat, keeping his brother from falling to the ground.

Yoru was unconscious for two days.


	12. Chapter 12

It seemed that the soul society had sensed his power boost, and called him in to explain it.

Only to be shocked as Yoru demonstrated his new bankai.

Since it wasn't fully complete, they didn't press him to become a captain.

Soi Fon, however, decided to help him along...by enlisting Byukuya. His bankai was close enough to Yoru's that it would help him train. While Ichigo and Tatsuki trained with the vizards, Rukia trained with Orihime, Chad and Renji improved on their skills...

Everyone was preparing for the long battles ahead.

And it was Unohana who enlisted Yoru to use his secondary bankai state. She found his secondary ability to be of great use in freeing up beds.

(In exchange for using his secondary for them, they agreed to teach him more healing kido.)

Yoru was taking a break with Rukia and Ichigo. Apparently a rare event was about to happen, and he was the test subject for the R and D department.

* * *

And his day had gone so well. Ichigo took out another hollow, Yoru got to laugh at him for being an idiot, and they followed an unusual signature.

For some reason, the weird spirits didn't seem to notice them...until Yoru sensed someone appeared.

All of a sudden, the colors on their weird faces turned from an off color rose red to a crimson red.

Yoru saw a flurry of leaves come from nowhere. The weird spirits began to vanish wherever the whirlwind touched them.

A bizarre gust of wind blew the rest away.

Yoru was wondering where that odd girl came from. She seemed really happy about getting rid of the weird spirits.

* * *

Ichigo and Rukia left, and Yoru decided to hang out with the weird girl...who's name turned out to be Senna.

Luckily Yoru knew exactly how to handle her.

He bought her lunch.

"So what do you want to know?" asked Senna, eating her sandwich.

"First off, what the hell were those things?"

"I have no idea."

"You didn't know,and you still attacked them?"

"I just had the feeling that I needed to."

"Meh...I've heard worse excuses... Where are you going?"

"I want to look around!"

"Do you have any money?" he asked, amused.

Seeing the look on her face, he grinned.

"Lucky for you I have my wallet on me. Let's go shopping!"

Yoru didn't regret going shopping with the girl. She had better fashion sense than he did.

* * *

By the time Ichigo reported what Urahara had mentioned, Yoru was eager to learn more. Rukia had gone back to report interference with her soul pager.

(Yoru had one as well, but his was built personally by Urahara.)

'So how's it going with our mystery girl?'Ichigo asked through their link.

'She has no idea what they are, only that she needed to get rid of them.'

'Great...another dead end.'

'Not quite. Chances are that she _is_ connected, we just haven't found our link. Who did they send anyway?'

Before Ichigo could answer, he spotted a familiar head of hair.

'Never mind.'

"Oi! Toshiro-taicho!" waved Yoru.

Toshiro glared at whoever dared to call him by his name...but it dropped when he realized who was. Yoru was one of the rare people who Toshiro actually liked.

Probably because Yoru could speak to Hyorinmaru in his native tongue.

(Well, that and because Yoru was the only person who dared enter a snowball fight with the Soul Society's strongest ice-type user. Toshiro hadn't had that much fun in _ages_.)

"Shihouin."

"Hitsugaya," grinned Yoru.

Yoru squawked when Rangiku gave him her usual greeting.

"Ran-chan, air!" cried Yoru.

Rangiku was a bundle of energy, even if she did look around forty. She seemed to take a shine to Yoru ever since he started calling her Ran-chan. Though for some reason she had come to the idea that he was a taller version of her captain, because she kept giving him massive hugs.

Unfortunately, Yoru's head was right around the same height as her chest.

(Yoru, when he realized this fact, swore never to let his godfather _or _Remus hear of it. They would never let him live it down. Though he did consider pairing Rangiku with Sirius.)

Yoru only allowed Senna out of his sight when Ichigo took over. His brother could keep her out of trouble.

"So what's up?" asked Yoru.

"How close are you to perfecting your bankai?" asked Toshiro.

"The offensive version still needs work, but I don't pass out after using it. The healing and defensive one I've managed to get down pretty well. Why?"

"The Soutaicho wants you to take over one of the vacant squads. Several captains are more than happy to recommend you if you agree to it."

"What about Ichigo? He mastered his bankai a while back."

"Even though he is still a substitute, the soutaicho is willing to give him the promotion as well. We _are_ short three captains after all."

"Let me talk it over with my brother. If we agree, we get to pick which squad, right?"

"Pretty much."

"Just out of curiosity, which captains are willing to back me up?" asked Yoru.

"Unohana, Zaraki, Soi Fon, Byakuya, Ukitake and myself. For Ichigo Byakuya, Ukitake and Zaraki. You only need three captains to back you up."

"Good to know. I'll let you know soon enough after this whole Valley of Screams mess is over."

* * *

Yoru, much to his disbelief, found out that Ichigo had brought Senna home with him. She had been attacked when he left her with Ichigo.

"Hey Ichigo. You won't believe what Toshiro told me..."

Ichigo looked incredulous when he learned about the promotion.

"So if we agree to this..."

"Then we both have to suffer through the paperwork. On the plus side, we both get paid for it."

"And we get to choose which squad we get?"

"Like Toshiro said, there are three open positions. Think the vizards would like to quit running?"

"Become a captain and give them a place to stay?"

"Why not. So if you had to take a squad, which one would you take?"

"Which one has that guy with all the tattoos? That guy seemed reasonable enough."

"Shuhei? He's cool, but a bit uptight. The other empty spots are fifth and third. Kira is the lieutenant of third, and the lieutenant of fifth is still in a coma. She had a pretty nasty shock when Aizen turned traitor."

"How good is she?"

"From what Toshiro told me, she is a hard worker. But it will take some time for her to come to terms with Aizen betraying her."

"Well which one do you want?"

"I don't know."

* * *

Sirius was bored. Ever since Harry left, things had died down. It was boring as hell!

Then it hit him. He convinced Remus to get an owl, and sent a letter to the twins.

Two days later, they sent a reply.

_'Hello Lord Padfoot!_

_Harry's fine. Had to change his name to avoid tracking spells, but he's doing great._

_So's Ichigo._

_If you don't know who Ichigo is, you'll learn soon enough. Harry said that he's found you the perfect girlfriend. If you want, he can arrange an international portkey for you to come here!_

_From, _

_Terror Twins.'_

Sirius grinned. He had heard of Ichigo during a few letters to his godson. Harry didn't want him to be alarmed when he swapped places, so he told them both.

Sirius was very interested in meeting this kid.

So he sent a letter to his godson, labeled 'Prongslet'. The next day Hedwig arrived with a letter...and a aspirin bottle.

**Sirius, this is a port key to Urahara Shoten. He's a friend of mine. Just watch out, because we've been having a few issues here. Bring Remus if you want, but don't tell anyone where you're going.**

Sirius grabbed Remus without a word.

* * *

Yoru grinned when he saw Sirius sitting with Urahara. It didn't surprise him in the least that Sirius got along with Urahara. They had something in common.

They loved pranks.

"Yo."

"Pup!"

"Sirius!"

Sirius tackled his godson. Urahara snickered.

"So where is this girl you mentioned?"

Yoru grinned evilly.

"You'll have to wait a while before Rangiku shows up. Oh, and feel free to prank Toshiro-kun mercilessly. He needs to lighten up."

Yoruichi, when she ran into Sirius grinned. It was something of a relief to find out that Sirius didn't have a problem with her adopting him.

* * *

"So explain again how you lost Senna to the guys chasing her?" said Yoru.

"The captains showed up to take her, and they made their gambit. The bastard overpowered me at the last second," growled Ichigo.

"So our main problem is that we have no idea where she is."

"We know where she is. She's in the Valley of Screams. But we can't seem to find it."

"She would have left you clues. Anything she say strike you as odd?"

"She really likes heights?"

"Well then, what are you waiting for? Grab a broom and let's fly!" said Yoru.

Ichigo had to run to catch his brother. Soon the two were swooping and soaring on their brooms. Ichigo had a decent broom to use, but he was no match for Yoru's Firebolt unless he used wind magic.

And Ichigo was very good at wind magic.

As they got higher and higher, Ichigo kept an eye out for anything beyond their normal brand of unusual.

Finally, Yoru spotted it near the river.

"Ichigo. Over there."

Ichigo saw it. It was a giant hole in the river. He was amazed no one had commented on it sooner.

"Isn't this Valley of Screams place full of souls?"

"Yeah. According to Hat-n-Clogs it's a place where those who couldn't make it to the soul society properly gather until they can be sent on their way. Every time it reaches a certain point the Shinenju appears to guide them."

"And that being is Senna?"

"Yeah. Apparently she's the one that all the memories were stored in."

"That explains a lot."

"Huh?"

"I can hear zanpakuto. Her Mirokumaru was very jumbled...but I could hear several voices speaking through it. If she is a collection of memories given human form, then all those voices I heard belong to the blanks."

"I still don't get how you can hear sword spirits."

"Neither can I, but so long as it doesn't drag me into a situation that is life threatening, I could care less," said Yoru.

"Point. Let's head to the river."

"Hey Hedwig. Deliver this to Urahara, okay girl?" said Yoru. His owl had spotted them in the sky and had flown alongside him.

Hedwig did a wingover and scooped up the note. By the time they landed, the gang was all waiting for them.

* * *

"Why do you own an owl?" asked Tatsuki.

"First birthday present. Besides, Hedwig is part of the family!" said Yoru cheerfully.

"Hedu-wigu is sooo cute!" said Orihime.

"Hedwig. If it helps, the Japanese equivalent to her name is Otome or Senshi."

That cleared up the confusion about her name.

"Anyway, we need to retrieve Senna before they use her power for something nefarious," said Yoru.

"I'm afraid we'll have some problems with that. The Valley of Screams is very similar to the Seireitei or Hueco Mundo. Normal people can't enter there or they would be as weak as a normal soul," said Urahara.

"Then you guys will have to stay behind," said Yoru.

Just as Yoru was about to jump into the hole, Toshiro arrived with reinforcements.

"Yo."

"Toshiro-taicho! Ran-chan!"

Yoru then remembered who was waiting.

"Oi, Ran-chan, would you mind sticking around for a while when this is over? I'll pay for your shopping bill."

Toshiro knew then and there that he was up to something. But he also knew that he could trust Yoru to keep Rangiku from going overboard.

* * *

"Ne, Ichigo. Need a hand?" said Yoru, grinning.

Ichigo glared at his brother. He had been getting his ass kicked for the past ten minutes, and now he deigns to show up?

"Hey Senna! We're here to rescue you!" said Yoru.

Senna was bound to the center of the Valley. She almost looked like she was in pain.

Yoru used his powers to get closer...but the shinigami who kidnapped her prevented him from taking her off the pole.

"Yoru! Senna!"

"Just kill the bastard already! I'm sure Shirosaki won't mind going all out!" yelled Yoru.

Ichigo had, through the past month, managed to synchronize with Shirosaki. He could now use his full mask for up to five minutes at a time.

The battle was over before it truly began. Renji, Rukia, Zaraki, Toshiro and Yoru all dealt with the minor soul reapers.

Ichigo dealt with the main issue.

They had an hour before the world destabilized and went out of control.

Ichigo was having real trouble with the man...until he had enough and brought out Shirosaki.

Mamoru's sudden appearance in the battle changed the tide. He sliced the man in half before he could really have a chance to get over it.

Ichigo used his power to break Senna's prison.

"Hey...Senna."

"You're late Ichigo," she smiled tiredly.

* * *

"So this is the mysterious Senna," said Tatsuki.

"She reminds me of Alyss," said Chad.

They had stopped the Kido Cannon from being fired. But only just. Though that didn't mean they were out of danger just yet.

The dimension wasn't used to being used that way. It was in danger of going completely out of control.

Only Yoru sensed that.

Before anyone could ask what he was doing, Yoru began a long chant.

Ichigo was taken aback.

"Yoru, what are you...?"

Then Yoru threw an emerald and blood red ball at the hole. The circle collapsed in on itself, forcing the dimension to seal itself off from the other worlds.

"What did you do?" asked Senna.

"Don't freak out. Anyway, even if I did temporarily seal the dimension, it won't be destroyed."

"What?"

"So long as the Shinenju exists, so will the Valley of Screams. In order to keep it from going out of control, I had to seal it away for a while until it stabilizes."

"You...can do that?" said Toshiro.

Yoru looked to the East.

"I don't know why, but the minute I realized what was happening, I knew what had to be done. So I followed through with it."

As far as Toshiro knew, Yoru had that power because of Cheshire. He made no further attempts to wonder why Yoru could do that.

* * *

_Three weeks later..._

The Valley of Screams returned. Senna had long since accepted what she was. And she was ready to do her job in guiding the Blanks back to the cycle of reincarnation.

"Arigato, Yoru, Ichigo. If you hadn't saved me and the Valley, they would still be lost..."

"You're welcome Senna. Maybe we'll run into you again when the Valley comes back..."

"Let's hang out again, Yoru, Ichigo!" said Senna as she vanished into mist.

"Ne...Ichigo."

"Hmm?"

"Do you think she'll be happy now?"

"Something tells me next time she'll remember us for sure."

"I hope so," said Yoru.


	13. Chapter 13

Rangiku stared at the man who had tackled Yoru in a hug. He seemed like her type.

Stylish, handsome, and he could hold his liquor. She didn't really care that he was rich. But what sealed the deal was the way he treated Toshiro, who had come to drag her back to the soul society.

He treated Toshiro with respect, but also like a friend.

"Yoru...who is this man?"

"My dogfather, Sirius Black."

Yoru had a rather interesting prank in mind. Sirius had no idea that the soul reapers uniforms were for both genders. Or what the coats meant.

"Say, Ran-chan... Did Byakuya happen to come with you guys?" asked Yoru.

"I think so. Why?"

"I just thought of a fun prank..."

Rangiku's eyes lit up in amusement.

"Oh...?"

Yoru spelled it out for her, and she couldn't help her reaction. She started laughing.

"What are you two up to?" asked Toshiro, suspicious.

"You'll find out soon enough..." grinned Yoru.

* * *

Sirius spotted the girl Yoru mentioned. He wasn't kidding when he said she was a real looker.

Rukia and Ichigo happened to be present when Yoru's prank went off.

Sirius walked up to the tall girl, and said loudly in a slur (Yoru had made very sure to get his godfather drunk...) "Hey cutie, what's your name?"

The look on Byakuya's face was priceless. It was also recorded and sent straight to the soul society before he could destroy the copies.

Ichigo, when he realized that Byakuya had just been mistaken for a _girl_, nearly died laughing. Even Rukia looked like she was having trouble keeping a straight face.

The glare Byakuya shot Sirius would have incinerated any normal person. But after being inoculated against his mother's glares (and later McGonagall's) he just kept on grinning.

But what set Rukia off was the fact that Sirius kept hitting on her older brother...until Byakuya said curtly "I happen to be a male."

Ichigo finally got over his laughing fit, and dragged Sirius away before Byakuya tried to kill him.

He was still snickering when he told Sirius "You do realize that you just helped Yoru play a prank on him, right?"

"He told me as much when he got me drunk and told me to hit on the tall chick in a guy's clothing."

That set Ichigo off again. When he saw Yoru, his grin split his face.

"Oi, Ichigo!"

He walked up to his brother, and his grin was infectious when he realized _what_ Yoru had in his hands.

It was a camera. Next to him was Rangiku with a video camera. She was still grinning.

"Wait till everyone sees this!" she snickered.

* * *

Rukia returned to the house...and found Ichigo still laughing.

"What was that all about in town earlier?" she asked.

"Yoru was playing a prank involving his godfather."

Her mouth quirked in amusement. It had been pretty funny to see the look on her brother's face.

"You do realize that if he finds out you were in on it, he will kill you?"

"He wasn't in on it until he lead Sirius away," said Yoru.

"You have to admit, that was pretty damn funny! I mean did you see the look on his face?" snickered Ichigo.

Rukia grinned.

"That reminds me. Have you two decided which squad you'll take over?" asked Rukia.

"Oh that. Which one did you want again Yoru?"

"Kira's cool and all, but Shuhei is a bit too uptight for me."

"What about that girl? Momo?"

"Perhaps Squad five would be best. I can try to help her when she wakes up."

"Which one should I go for?"

"Three. Kira doesn't look like he would hold a grudge..."

"Meh. Either way I would have to travel with you to work."

"Yeah, but at least your dad won't freak out if he finds out."

Rukia didn't know what they meant by that, but she didn't ask.

* * *

"So you two have decided?" asked Toshiro.

"Yeah. I'll take Squad five," said Yoru.

"Squad three."

"We may as well get the stupid thing over with. I hope you two are prepared to deal with the backlog of paperwork..." muttered Toshiro.

Ichigo and Yoru winced.

* * *

It would take them nearly a month to get used to the fact that they were now captains. Fortunately, the backlog wasn't as bad as Toshiro made it out to be.

Though Yoru did cheer up his squad when they realized how he sent the papers to their correct places.

He made paper airplanes out of them, and charmed them to fly wherever they needed to go. When his brother learned of it, he started making cranes out of his.

Kira had a bit of difficultly getting used to Ichigo. Even though Ichigo was officially a captain, he still lived in the world of the living.

And for some reason, the limiter that was always placed on lieutenant and captain level shinigami never took hold on him. Yoru, once he finally managed to perfect his bankai states, had the same problem.

The only difference was that Yoru could at least control his reitsu and Ichigo couldn't.

What really bothered Yoru was that he kept seeing wizards from the West in town. Normally this wouldn't bother him, it was winter vacation after all, but they appeared to be looking for something. Or some_one_.

* * *

Yoru was really starting to hate captain's meetings. They made them stand for an hour and listen to the old man blather on.

So, in an effort to relieve boredom, he started bringing something to amuse himself without anyone noticing.

It was a muggle invention called a laser pointer.

It took only three meetings for Ichigo to have a hard time trying to keep a straight face. Why?

Captain Komamura, for reasons they could only guess at, always seemed to hone in on the little red dot. His face would always twitch uncontrollably, like he wanted to chase it.

For some reason Soi Fon never caught Yoru using the little red dot to drive them nuts.

After the fourth time watching Komamura's ears twitch this way and that, Ichigo finally went to Yoru's squad with a grin, and begged him to get him a laser pointer.

* * *

Toshiro's eye twitched. It was that damn red spot again. Every time they had a meeting the thing would appear and Komamura would get the twitches. He swore if he found out which one of them was doing it he was going to freeze them!

To make matters worse, Hyorinmaru had started to follow that stupid light around, trying to catch it. The only person who seemed to notice was Yoru, and he looked like it was really hard to keep a straight face.

Toshiro decided he could go see how Yoru was doing.

And found something suspicious laying on his desk...

Wondering what the odd little button did, he pressed it, and hoped he didn't get it from Kurotsuchi.

Suddenly he noticed Hyorinmaru was acting strangely...and when his eyes fell on the reason he scowled.

Yoru walked in, saw Toshiro had the laser pointer, and tried to back away slowly.

"It was you?"

"Would you like one to annoy Rangiku with?"

Toshiro went to yell at him, then stopped. While finding out that Yoru was the one causing mischief during captains meetings wasn't surprising, finding out that his sword had a playful side was.

After being around the Kurosaki brothers, he knew when he should let things die. The little red light was annoying, but it didn't actually cause any problems beyond that.

"How about next time you do the pointing? You should see how Komamura tends to have his nose in the direction of the red light!" grinned Yoru.

Toshiro knew he shouldn't...but he got bored often enough during the meetings that he said "Fine."

Yoru's grin split his face. The next morning Toshiro found the laser pointer in his desk with a note on how to change the batteries and to let Yoru know when it quit working.

Just to see how it worked, he waited until Rangiku arrived...and then used it on her.

The effect made the little thing worth it's wait in gold. Apparently his lieutenant had some cat in her (no surprise there) because she kept trying to catch the light.

It was all he could do not to laugh and give himself away!

* * *

Yoru was grinning evilly. Thanks to Alyss, he now had an entire case of coke and energy drinks at his disposal. Seeing his accomplice, he called out to her.

It took only five drinks to get her prepped. Once he was in the meeting, he waited for the fallout to begin.

It didn't take long. Yoru hated budget meetings, and made a point to skip out if he could. Three minutes in, the door practically exploded as Yachiru began bouncing off the walls, literally.

Anyone who had been around her in a sugar rush before knew well enough to get down. It took four captains two hours to find and restrain her long enough for it to wear off, but by that time Zaraki was still laughing.

He loathed budget meetings too.

Unohana was on the warpath, because her division usually handled the fall out whenever Yachiru went on a sugar binge. This time there were relatively few victims.

Ichigo didn't have to look far for the culprit. He had his lieutenant send Yoru a large gift of candy in thanks.

* * *

Unohana frowned. She knew something was off about today, but she couldn't place what. Then one of her seated officers burst into her office, and she realized that they had been pranked rather thoroughly.

Someone had set a trap above every door in the fourth division so that when a girl walked through they got bunny or cat ears, and the boys turned into dogs.

Rather harmless for the most part, but when Rukia found out she walked in with a huge grin...only to find herself in a full on Playboy bunny costume.

Rumor had it when Byakuya found the culprit he was going to strangle them.

Ichigo was relaxing with his brother, trying not to laugh at the chaos he caused.

"So they have absolutely no clue who's doing all this?" he snickered.

"None. It's as if the culprit was a hollow the way he comes and goes!" said Yoru with a straight face.

A few times he had almost been caught, but his doppelganger spell fooled everyone.

* * *

Ichigo laughed his head off. He couldn't believe no one had thought to check Yoru. Then again, they didn't know his birth name either.

Since Yoru's lieutenant was still in a coma, she couldn't give him up to anyone.

And while his squad was used to the cool and helpful Aizen, they didn't know how to deal with a prankster Yoru.

After hearing his squad complain about him being a captain (and therefore unable to prank him back) he decided to leave a note in the lunch hall.

"_Those who are pranked by Squad Five's captain Yoru Shihouin are free to revenge prank him. He won't hold it against you."_

It took a few days for that to get around, but once they realize that yes, he encouraged them to prank him back, it was an all out war in his squad.

It was a common sight to see soul reapers from squad five with pink, purple, blue and green hair. Or them to be complete covered in glitter.

The other squads said nothing...but made very, very sure to avoid squad five lest they get hit.

Squad three was the only one who didn't follow that unspoken rule. But at least they were encouraged to prank squad five back if they were hit.

* * *

"So explain to me again why every time someone sees squad five or three they flinch and try to avoid them?" asked Yoruichi, trying not to laugh.

"Two words."

Urahara, Yoruichi and Sirius all looked at Yoru in expectation.

"Prank wars."

Sirius laughed and clapped his godson. Trust the son of James to turn the two squads into the biggest pranksters.

"And what has been going on during the meetings? I heard the Soutaicho has been getting onto Komamura because he always twitches," said Urahara.

"Laser pointer. Apparently whatever animal Komamura was in his previous life liked to chase little red dots," said Yoru with a straight face.

To prove his point, he took it out and had the little red dot next to Yoruichi's hand. Much to their amusement, she couldn't help her reaction as she tried to grab it.

She was a cat after all.

"I love muggles. I wish we had this back at Hogwarts!" said Sirius.

Yoru snickered. He could totally picture them using it on McGonagall.

* * *

Toshiro walked up to Yoru with a request. It had become pretty well known that the boy could hear zanpakuto. He wasn't really trying to keep _that_ a secret. (It was more or less the reason why he was considered the prank king of the Seireitei.)

"What's up Toshiro?"

The white haired boy had gotten used the fact that Ichigo and Yoru insisted on calling him Toshiro and not by his proper title. He fully planned to let it drop to see how they would react.

"Yoru, I heard from Ichigo that you went into his inner world once..."

Yoru paused. While he had gotten used to being without a lieutenant to help him out, he had overheard once that Toshiro and Momo were childhood friends.

"Don't tell me... You want me to see if I can wake her up?"

Toshiro nodded.

"Is this because you feel responsible or because you genuinely care about her well being?" asked Yoru.

"Because I care about her. It's not good for her if she remains in a coma for much longer. Please..."

"If I do this, there's no telling what might happen. Are you sure you're ready to live with the consequences?"

Toshiro nodded. If he hadn't made up his mind to ask, then he wouldn't be there in the first place.

"I'll see if Unohana approves of it, but I won't make any guarantees. You better start praying that I say the right things."

It turned out that Unohana and Kurotsuchi wanted to observe him. He agreed, only if Unohana kept the mad scientist of Squad Twelve far away from his physical body.

He sat down in a meditative position, and closed his eyes. He could hear Tobeume easily enough. He asked for permission to enter.

She allowed him in, once she learned why he was there.

* * *

Yoru walked carefully in Momo's inner world. Her sword was carefully watching him in case he tried something. He didn't blame her in the least.

When he found her, she was a gibbering wreck.

Seeing that he would get no where with words, he did the only thing he could see Hermione doing in this situation.

He walked up to Momo and slapped her, hard.

The sheer _shock_ of that act snapped her out of her current mental state and she glared at him.

He could vaguely hear her sword yelling at him.

"Look, you can either remain here feeling sorry for yourself because he turned out to be an asshole, or you can do something about it and prove him wrong."

Momo's glare intensified.

"How dare you...!"

"If you want to get back at me, then you'll have to wake up. Of course then you would have to deal with a new captain who has been allowed to prank his squad and encouraged them to do the same. Are you aware that most of the other squads (except three) are afraid to come near our barracks for fear of being hit with a prank?" he said with a shit eating grin.

He could see she was furious with him.

For slapping her, insulting her, taking over where Aizen left, and for making their squad a mess.

She didn't realize that he had planned that when he saw how bad she was. If he couldn't get her to see reason, then he was going to get her mad enough to do something about it.

Yoru started running when he realized that he had effectively snapped her out of whatever had kept her in a coma. He knew he had better start running to avoid what she was planning on doing.

Yoru snapped his eyes open, got rid of the kinks, and ran like hell.

Unohana, Kurotsuchi and Toshiro all stared in confusion...until they realized that an enraged Momo was up and ready to strangle Yoru.

Yoru wisely hid in Cheshire's room, sending his paperwork out through Ichigo. His lieutenant was on the hunt for his blood.

* * *

Toshiro looked at Yoru in both shock and amusement.

"You did say you wanted back," said Yoru.

"What the hell did you do to piss her off?" it was a question everyone wanted to know.

He looked unrepentant.

"I gave her a good slap to wake her up, then I proceeded to piss her off enough that she would have to wake up in order to get revenge on me. Like that old saying goes...don't get mad, get even."

"And you thought angering a girl who is very good at kido was the smartest thing to do?" asked Toshiro, absolutely amused.

"It worked didn't it?"


	14. Chapter 14

By the time Momo _finally_ caught her new captain, he had stopped teasing her.

It would take a few months before she realized he only did it out of concern. That realization, however, did not stop what she did to him in revenge.

"Come on! Do I really have to wear this?" he whined.

"Consider this payback for telling everyone in our squad that it was a free-for-all concerning pranks," Momo said tartly.

Once Momo had caught her new captain, she had paralyzed him, and then had several of her fellow female soul reapers dress him in a French maid outfit.

Yoru only let her catch him because he had slapped her in her inner world.

"Just so you know, this is your only freebie!" he grumbled.

Yoru was forced to spend the entire day in the French Maid outfit. He didn't even bother trying to hide the fact from the soul society.

Which was why several people who were either brave or stupid took pictures of the event.

They were later pranked to an inch of their life and the photos were burned.

On the plus side, his paperwork was cut down considerably with Momo helping him. Even if she did have a problem with him.

* * *

"So let me get this straight. You _let_ your lieutenant put you in a French maid outfit?" said Sirius.

"I deliberately slapped her in her own inner world. She had a freebie."

"Fair enough."

"So what happened afterword?"

"Well the prank war has finally gone down to the point that the other squads quit avoiding us. Apparently my squad is just as terrified of a pissed off Momo as I am. It's a very good thing that I don't have to rely on Unohana to heal me when Momo first caught me."

"Why?"

"She threw one hell of a right hook!"

Sirius let out a bark of laughter. His lieutenant sounded like a real fireball.

"After I let her beat the living crap out of me, and then a prank, she finally got back to normal. Though she still gives me dirty looks when she thinks I'm not looking."

"Did you tell her that her friend was the reason you were even there?"

"Not unless she really gives me a reason to. I really don't want Toshiro to get hit by some of her pranks."

Sirius laughed, and the two just talked about the pranks Yoru pulled on a weekly basis.

* * *

"So your squad got picked to take this Ouin thing?" asked Yoru.

"Unfortunately. And every time they move the stupid thing they always make a big deal out of it," complained Rangiku.

"Is it true that our number came out, but they chose squad ten instead?" asked Momo.

"Something about not letting us get any ideas, since I'm so new and all," shrugged Yoru.

Toshiro, who heard the comment, snorted.

"Like you don't have enough on your plate being a captain. Clearly they have never met you."

Yoru shrugged.

"Just don't get killed out there. Who knows what that idiot's stunt may have stirred up."

Yoru, in order to prevent a tailspin from happening around Momo, had taken to calling Aizen an idiot when she was within earshot.

It was working like a charm. While she still had feelings for the traitor, she usually got mad at her new captain instead.

If he could get her to let go of Aizen and not go back into a coma, then his little taunts and insults were working.

He hoped that eventually she would shoot a few insults his way. If she did, then he would know she had at least gotten to the point that he didn't have to worry so much over her.

* * *

"What...the...hell...are...you...saying?" said Yoru slowly.

Rangiku didn't look too happy as she told Yoru exactly what happened. Yoru started cursing up a blue streak.

"I should have known. I should have known this would happen when our squad was picked first!"

They looked at him with disbelief.

"I should have warned Toshiro about what happens when my luck comes around. Now he's missing and the whole seireitei is after him!"

"Um...Yoru-taicho?" asked Momo carefully. He was like a raving madman.

Yoru calmly explained what happened the last time he was picked for something big. And how his previous years at school had gone. It was then they realized he wasn't joking about his luck.

"I'm going to find him. And when I do, that brat is in for an arse whooping!" he growled.

Rangiku covered her mouth to contain the snickering. The mere thought of Yoru of all people spanking Toshiro for being an idiot...

Well, if word got out, her tiny Taicho would never live it down.

She really hoped that Ichigo was the one who found him, not Yoru.

Yoru stayed behind to finish up all the paperwork sent to him in response to a rather unpleasant prank one of his seated officers played on the seventh division.

Apparently they had thought it hilarious to paint a life sized picture of Captain Komamura chasing the red dot of doom. (It was a joke name for the laser pointer.)

He had not found it amusing, and before anyone could get a word in he had destroyed the idiots...and four walls.

Yoru of course, had to pay for the damages.

Momo had thought it amusing enough, especially when she saw the look on his face at the paperwork _he_ would have to fill out.

By morning he had finally finished, and had posted an irate notice in his barracks.

"_The next idiot who pranks a captain or seated officer that results in property damage is going to be the one FILLING OUT THE DAMN PAPERWORK_ _from the resulting aftermath!"_

That had a few soul reapers chuckling. Despite his complaints, their captain was the one who usually turned it in on time.

* * *

Yoru finally made it back to the world of the living...only to find out Ichigo had found Toshiro and given him his bed.

He had made it back in time to find said boy still in it.

"Ichigo, why is the missing captain of Squad ten on _my_ bed?" asked Yoru, his eyebrow twitching.

"Because I found him right after the stealth force threw me out of their little pocket dimension."

"Let me rephrase that. Why did you put him on _my_ bed when you knew I was likely to be worn out from dealing with my squad?"

Ichigo didn't look repentant in the least as he said "Your bed was closer to the door when I came in."

"Remind me again why I shouldn't prank you for this?"

"Because we're brothers?"

"Oh, now I remember. Shirosaki has the better ideas when it comes to pranking _you._"

Ichigo winced. Shirosaki had an unholy tendency to come up with some rather humiliating pranks.

According his hollow self, he usually came up with them out of boredom, and always to annoy Ichigo.

Rukia was missing from her spot, so Yoru thought about sleeping in there.

Until he realized that Toshiro had no idea that he owned an invisibility cloak.

He smirked.

"You go to sleep or hide, and I'll prank Toshiro instead. How often am I going to get a chance like this?" he said.

Ichigo sighed in relief.

"But in exchange you'll have to suffer through one of Shirosaki's pranks."

Ichigo went to check on his own squad for the day. The brothers had learned very quickly that if they checked in every day for a few hours, they had the rest of the day to themselves.

Unless some idiot caused enough damage that the repair unit got on their ass, or there was a meeting.

* * *

Toshiro woke up, and realized where he was immediately. If he didn't want to involve Kurosaki or his brother, he would have to leave before dawn broke.

He put on the cloak that his former friend had left behind, and prepared to head out.

Only to trip on nothing. Every time he got up to leave the room, he would trip without warning!

He suppressed a growl. Something was up.

Before he could realize what was really going on, he felt someone hit him with a weak kido.

"If you think for one bloody minute I am going to let you walk out of here without an explanation, then you had best prepare yourself for an ass kicking!" growled Yoru.

Toshiro's eyes widened when Yoru appeared out of nowhere.

Then his mind caught up to the fact that the boy had been in the room the entire time, waiting.

"Why did you trip me?" he asked finally.

"Because you are acting like an idiot. Toshiro, some burdens are not meant to be felt alone. If you intend to get back that glorified stamp, then you have to accept that you need help."

"This is my fight."

"We acknowledge that, but you have to realize that the man you are going after has enlisted some help. And unless you do the same, you are going to have your arse kicked."

Toshiro weighed the benefits of having the Kurosaki brothers helped him. And realized that even if he didn't ask, then they would butt in anyway.

"Fine. But Kusaka is mine."

"Agreed."

Yoru sent the message on to his brother. Ichigo got his doppelgangers ready to play Yoru's part. As far as the Soul Society was concerned, he was out looking for Toshiro.

* * *

Toshiro was reluctant to admit it, but Yoru was more helpful that he had originally thought. He had learned plenty of healing kido from Unohana. And he was more skilled at getting around than Toshiro had originally believed.

Apparently he didn't like using Cheshire's power to get everywhere like his fellow captains believed.

During the time that Yoru accompanied Toshiro, they ended up learning more about each other than the white haired boy had wanted.

He had no idea that Yoru wasn't his birth name, and that he had been an only child until Ichigo became linked to him for some unknown reason.

It wasn't until a week passed that Toshiro saw something that would bother him for a long time.

Yoru had very deep scars on his back. They had to be, since he was in soul form and normally scars don't translate that well into their soul.

Of course if you had one from being attacked by a spiritual being, that was another story.

"What the hell is this Ouin thing anyway?" asked Yoru suddenly.

"A treasure belonging to the Royal Family. No one is allowed to see it unless they are _from_ the Royal Family."

"And?"

"It's their Royal Seal. We have no idea what powers it actually possesses."

"So let me get this straight. The Royal Family decides that it's a smart idea to move their precious seal every decade or so, even though it makes the thing vulnerable to being stolen. And every time they move it, they have one of the squads standing by in case someone is stupid enough to attack."

"Yes."

"Don't they realize that we have better things to do with our time than to stand guard over a glorified paperweight?"

Toshiro choked back a laugh. Yoru had a reputation of being blunt when he felt someone was being a complete idiot.

"So what exactly does the royal seal look like anyway?"

Toshiro took a stick and drew a rough sketch of the seal. Yoru didn't realize it at the time, but when he tried drawing it himself, he drew it with natural ease, despite never having seen it before.

Toshiro's eyes widened.

"How did you know what it looks like?" he asked.

"Huh?"

"I deliberately left out a few strokes. Yet you added the ones I left out."

"I don't know. All I did was try to copy what you drew. Wait a minute. You left a few out? Why?"

"Because frankly you wouldn't have anything to do with the Royal family even if you did something to really piss them off. Especially since you and Ichigo live in the human world."

"Even if Ichigo is an Empath?"

"What?"

"Ichigo is an empath. You didn't notice?"

Toshiro sputtered. That was news to him!

"What level is he?"

"Level three. He can't actively feel emotions, but if he's close to someone, he can seek them out easily."

"You mean Ichigo could find you wherever we are?"

"Actually he could find both of us. Ichigo and I have always considered you as a little brother."

Toshiro's eyebrows twitched.

"Is that why you two never call me by my proper title?"

"Pretty much."

Toshiro sighed. It had always vexed him that they insisted by calling him by his first name.

"So who is Kusaka?"

Toshiro saw no point in lying to Yoru. He would find out soon enough.

"Kusaka...is a friend of mine from back when I was still in the academy. He was killed by the Central 46."

"Why?"

"Because he was unlucky enough to share the same sword...as me."

"Twin zanpakuto?"

Toshiro said nothing. But his silence was all Yoru needed to confirm it.

"Bloody hell. And I thought the idiots in Central 46 were morons before... So what happened?"

"They forced us to fight, to determine the true master of Hyorinmaru. They wouldn't even let me surrender my sword. But in the middle of our battle that they forced upon us, they released the task force to subdue and assassinate Kusaka. I had to watch him die as the Central 46 decided for us."

"That...is total bollocks! No wonder the guy was pissed off. If they hadn't been killed by that asshole Aizen, I would do it myself! Then again..."

Toshiro looked at him sharply.

"Perhaps it was their own karma come back to bite them in the arse for all the poor decisions they made."

"You...have a strange way of speaking."

"I'm not Japanese."

Toshiro had figured out that much.

"What country are you originally from then?"

"I'm European."

Toshiro's eyes widened in shock.

"You... You're from the Avalon territory?"

"Avalon?"

"Each continent has it's own soul society. The Seireitei for Asia, Avalon for Europe, and so on. We aren't encouraged to interact with each other unless the situation is extremely dire."

"So the Royal Family isn't in charge of the others?"

"They wouldn't care if our society was destroyed unless the world itself would collapsed. As far as they are concerned, it's an internal matter."

"Figures. This is why I despise bloody politics."

Toshiro suddenly stiffened. The shrine they were hiding in was about to be surrounded.

"You fight them, I'll make sure you get a proper rematch."

Toshiro's eyes widened.

"You and Kusaka both deserve that much. It's not fair that someone butted in before you two decided it amongst yourselves."

* * *

Yoru healed Toshiro's wounds, making sure that he lessened the pain. It was very fortunate that he left supplies in Cheshire's world, because otherwise Toshiro would have gone without any food or proper water.

(His ice would have been well enough, but it wasn't very healthy.)

"Are you ready for the battle to come?"

"I have long since prepared myself to fight Kusaka. If we must fight each other to find out who is the true master, then I don't want any interruptions from outside forces."

Yoru had a silly smirk as he said "Message passed along the line. It seems Ichigo is currently fighting Kusaka and his little friends right now."

Toshiro looked at him in shock.

Yoru cocked his head.

"It seems his empathy has finally kicked in. Ichigo's empath ability works best when his sword syncs up with whatever he is fighting."

Yoru helped Toshiro up, and the two walked on.

The building was reminiscent of Central 46. It was also wet and in many places puddles had formed.

"So you finally found me. I wanted you to find me."

Kusaka appeared. He raised an eye at Yoru's presence, but the boy raised his hands.

"Not going to interfere. This is your fight, not mine."

"Kusaka!"

"That is why I wounded you with Hyorinmaru. You can't still believe that I still alive? Never mind that. Hey, Hitsugaya. Don't you think we've taken such a long detour?"

"Detour?"

"You know full well what the 13 Court Guard Squads are like. Despite that, you've hung around them. Why? Is it that innocent childhood friend of yours?"

"Hinamori has nothing to do with this."

Yoru choked a bit. He wasn't aware that was her name. Everyone he knew just called her Momo.

"Now where is the Ouin?" asked Toshiro.

Kusaka held the thing up. A spark of recognition came into Yoru's eyes.

He remembered the Ouin from somewhere. Like he had seen it a long time ago and had forgotten about it.

"It's right here. We're going to use this to realize our dream."

"Dream...?"

"Yes."

"What is the power of the Ouin? And how do you know it?"

"Don't get excited. You'll find out soon enough. Now then, let's go."


	15. Chapter 15

Yoru could feel the power of the Ouin. And it felt so familiar. Like a friend he hadn't seen in a long time.

Something inside him began to pulse in time with the Ouin. Cheshire couldn't function around the Ouin's power. It was similar enough to his own, and more powerful.

It could easily super-cede his ability to move across worlds.

And then, just as quickly as it had begun, the power faded. Yoru opened his eyes to find that they were on Sokyoku hill.

Toshiro, who was standing next to him, gasped in shock.

Yoru, who's eyes were always an emerald green color, were now a bright gold. Almost the exact same shade as the Ouin itself.

Kusaka smirked, and explained the full power of the Ouin. Suddenly things started to make a little more sense to Toshiro.

"Yoru...you're synchronizing with the Ouin!" said Toshiro.

"_No surprise there, Toshiro. After all, most of my powers actually come from the Ouin itself."_

That was news to them.

"What are you talking about, brat?" demanded Kusaka.

Yoru had a shit eating smirk as he said calmly _"You're not the only __one who was reborn thanks to the Ouin. A long time ago, I naively took that glorified paperweight into my hands. It reacted to my reitsu, and forced me to reincarnate. Thanks to that, I've been lost in the stream of souls for four hundred years."_

"Yoru... You're...?"

"_Who I was before is nothing to who I am now. I am Yoru Shihouin, and I don't give a damn what some old geezers seem to think."_

Kusaka didn't seem the least bit surprised that he was the second person to be revived by the Ouin.

"Who were you before?"

Yoru laughed coldly.

"_Who I was before makes your little rebellion insignificant. I know for a fact that if the soutaicho ever _suspected_ who I was, then my peaceful days would be over in a heartbeat. All that matters is that I am willing to...assist...you in finally having a fight without a single interruption this time."_

Kusaka sneered at him.

"_You two may as well get on with it. The other captains will be arriving very shortly if you don't hurry."_

Yoru could feel them rushing to the hill. Kusaka was so like his brother in that he wasn't subtle.

Or maybe he wanted an audience to witness his final demise. Perhaps to leave the soul society with the lesson they so desperately needed.

As the soul reapers appeared, Yoru was struck with the difference between the soul society and the magical society. It was as plain as night and day to him.

The soul society accepted battle as a way of life and embraced it. They never deluded themselves in thinking that they would become evil by killing an enemy. If something was trying to kill them, they didn't waste time in fighting back.

The magical society he knew and once loved was backward. They were so afraid of change that they opposed it with a violent fervor. People who could help bring them back into the light of day were scorned, ridiculed and ostracized without qualm. They were so dependent on ideas which had died hundreds of years ago that they were slowly killing themselves with each generation. And when challenged by an opposing force they hid in fear like ostriches.

In short they were rather pathetic and weak.

Yoru blinked. That thought had not come from his mind. There was only one place it could have come from, and it wasn't Ichigo.

Ulquiorra.

Yoru knew, without a doubt, what the Arrancar truly was. He wasn't a mere hollow, as the others believed him to be. Nor was he as cruel as he made himself out to be. There was a reason why Yoru had spared him when they fought.

He came back to the present when the soutaicho appeared. The stage was set, and Yoru prepared to keep them away while Toshiro finally settled their battle.

Kusaka wanted him to use his bankai, but Toshiro didn't want that.

Before they could be attacked by their own, Ichigo and Rukia finally came.

Toshiro never intended to be on Kusaka's side. He crossed blades with his former friend.

Rukia watched with understanding.

Kusaka had devoted himself to the soul society...but because he shared the same blade as his best friend, he was forced to fight. He was killed by the people he tried to serve, without even having a fair chance.

Toshiro blamed himself for Kusaka's death, and had never let it go even after all these years. So when Kusaka returned, intending to rule, he felt like he had no choice but to fight the man.

But in order to do that, he would have to go rogue and find him. Even if it meant he would have to die at the end.

Yoru would never let Toshiro die at the hands of the soul society. He had one ace up his sleeve that he hoped he would never have to use.

A few weeks after becoming a captain, he had looked up himself out of boredom.

It was then that he found out that he wasn't who he believed he was at all.

Yoruichi had known, and kept it from him. He didn't blame her, because the knowledge of what his soul really was could have ruined his peaceful life in an instant.

* * *

Kusaka raised the Ouin. He was going to release most of it's power using his bankai, which he couldn't control. If he couldn't control it, he was going to destroy the soul society.

He sliced the Ouin into uneven halves.

Yoru felt the pulsing grow stronger, but remained standing. The Ouin had tested him all those years ago, to see if he was worthy of it's power.

And here he was, preparing to accept it.

Ichigo stood before Toshiro, protecting him slightly.

"Don't try to shoulder the burden all alone! Your pain, your resolve... Share them _with_ us!"

"I'm no longer a captain..."

Yoru snorted.

"Toshiro, do you truly believe even for a second that we would accept you going rogue so easily? Matsumoto and the others...they still accept you as their captain," said Yoru.

Ichigo added his two bits by giving Toshiro a much needed whack to the head.

"You've tried to endure this all alone... Have you thought about others and how that makes them feel?"

Yoru remembered the pain of Masaki's death. He suspected it was the catalyst that had started everything. Her death was the one event which could explain how Ichigo and Yoru switched souls for four years.

How, he had no idea, but he would find out _someday._

"I know someone like you, who couldn't depend on others. I realized he was the weakest of all!"

It was then that Toshiro finally heard the voices of those who still cared about him. His squad.

"Get ready, Kurosaki. He's coming."

Yoru grinned. It seemed Toshiro had _finally_ listened to reason. And it came from the least subtle captain in the soul society! He felt like laughing, if the situation hadn't been so serious.

The tornado that appeared finally started to dissapate. What it revealed amused Yoru more than anything.

Kusaka had taken the form of Hyorinmaru for himself. He looked like a dragon who could stand on two legs. Wings and all.

Yoru blinked as he felt something yellow zoom past him. It was Zaraki. He grinned.

"_And of course NOW he decides to make an entrance. Why am I not surprised?" _he said dryly.

Zaraki blew a hole in the center of Kusaka's icy form. Everyone was impressed with the display of strength.

Yoru snickered.

"_So you managed to get up here without Yachiru's _directions_? Impressive."_

"That's it? What a disappointment-!"

He grabbed the beaten up blade with his claw. A giant ice flower appeared where Zaraki was, enveloping him completely.

"_You really expect something as tame as that to stop him?"_ asked Yoru dryly.

Kusaka laughed coldly, and took flight.

"You're attacks have no effect on me!"

"You're still alive! Great!"

Yoru shook his head in amusement. Trust Kenpachi to ignore everything else in exchange for a halfway decent fight. An idea struck him that was so amusing he had to fight back a laugh.

Ichigo looked at his brother.

"What's so amusing?"

"_Nothing, just thinking how funny it would be to send Zaraki in as a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, with Yachiru there to 'help' him."_

Ichigo let that image sink in for a minute, then tried not to laugh himself.

"You really want to traumatize them, don't you?"

"_If nothing else it will be highly amusing to see how Dumbledore reacts to the fact that none of their precious spells will work on him..." _snickered Yoru.

Then he looked out to one of the taller structures and grinned.

"_Oh look, the dragon has made itself a little nest. How cute."_

The two arrancar appeared, and landed on the icy platform. Kusaka enveloped the two in ice before launching icy tree limbs at the soul reapers.

"_This guy really goes all out, doesn't he?"_

Ichigo felt like face palming. He could see where this was heading.

"Great...another all out battle which will probably end in Toshiro killing this guy a second time."

"_Meh, at least we won't be bored." _

Ichigo nodded, and called Shirosaki back into himself. He had a feeling his inner hollow would have some fun in whatever little world Kusaka was about to bring out.

At the soutaicho's order, several soul reapers began to run on the icy spikes that now covered half the soul society. They ran in different groups.

While Kusaka managed to get rid of most of the minor soul reapers and a few captains, he didn't notice the few who escaped. Yoru, Momo and Shuhei all managed to avoid the blast.

The dark ball looked like some sort of strange atom, as it enveloped a good chunk of the soul society. Several soul reapers were caught inside the dark void.

* * *

"_Ow. Everyone all right?"_

"We're fine, Taicho," said Momo. Shuhei was right next to her.

Right before they had hit the ground, Yoru had cast a featherlight spell, which had decreased the damage they had gotten.

"Taicho, why is your voice so weird?"

"_The Ouin happens to share the same powers as Cheshire, only it's quite a bit stronger. The side effect of which is that it's influencing a good portion of my powers, so I can't vanish like normal or activate bankai."_

"Does that include a weird voice?" asked Shuhei.

"_Apparently. Something about the Ouin has synchronized with my soul, so my voice has changed to signify that fact. Rather annoying really. Let's find the others."_

Momo was the one who spotted the castle.

"I bet they're heading to the castle."

"_You're probably right. Let's get going and deal with this already."_

They all blinked when a white blur skidded in front of them.

"_So there you guys are. King is heading up to the top."_

"_Thanks, Mamoru. Having fun?"_

"_You bet! He told me to help Yoruichi and the ninja chick."_

Yoru snickered, knowing full well _Ichigo_ would be the one to handle the fall out from that nickname. The three used shun po to race to the top. Yoru saw Renji's bankai on another tower, and felt Zaraki rise from the one he couldn't see.

* * *

The three managed to make it up the top before Zaraki came out from under the tower he couldn't see. It was filled with Gillians and other hollows.

Yoru grinned, and drew his claws.

"I thought you said you couldn't use your shikai or bankai?" asked Momo.

"_Who said this was Cheshire's claws? These...are my claws. One of my animagi forms is a large black panther with a lightning scar over it's right eye."_

A thought occurred to Yoru. One that would amuse him greatly.

"_Momo, Shuhei. It is ill advised if you look at my eyes when I transform into one of my _other_ animal forms. I wonder how these mockeries will handle my poison?"_

The two glanced at him, wondering what he meant. Yoru hissed in amusement, and his body glowed a venomous green light. Scales erupted all over his body as he grew longer. His eyes shifted from emerald green to bright yellow. They became snake like in fact. The two kept their gaze on his body as he became an enormous serpent with spikes where his vertebrae should be.

Even in that form, they recognized him.

Yoru had somehow become a basilisk, complete with deadly venom. It took little time for him to figure out how to spray the deadly toxin at the hollows.

Basilisk venom was well known for acting like a corrosive acid on spiritual beings.

(No one had any clue _why_ that was, only that it could melt a soul reaper's arm off...or melt the mask right off a hollow and cause it immense pain.)

Yoru glanced at the two that were with him. He used his rare telepathic link to ask them _"If I head towards the tower, could you handle things from here? Or do you need to head to where the others are?"_

"Taicho, we'll join Matsumoto and the others!" said Momo, breathing heavily. It had been a long time since she had used her shikai.

"_I'll open a path for you two to escape in."_

Yoru blasted the gillians in the way with his venom, creating a temporary opening. They used shun po to reach Rangiku and the others. Toshiro and Ichigo were already making their way to the tower.

* * *

By the time Yoru made it there, Ichigo had already severed the link between Kusaka and the Ouin.

The former soul reaper stood there, heavily wounded facing Toshiro.

The world that Kusaka had created with the Ouin vanished, breaking like shards of glass.

Yoru landed carefully (he had grown a set of dragon wings just to get there) and returned to being human. He watched as Toshiro settled once and for all the fight between himself and Kusaka. The twin zanpakuto clashed for the last time.

Ichigo noticed his brother was beside him, and said nothing.

Kusaka began to fade from existence, his true goal had finally be achieved. Toshiro had beaten him fairly this time.

Yoru felt the presence of the Ouin above him, and held out his hand. The glorified paperweight which had caused this whole mess fell neatly into his hand.

Something inside his soul clicked with the Ouin, and he could tell something about himself had changed, slightly.

"I can't believe that this whole bloody mess was over this damn paperweight," he snorted.

Ichigo gave him a look.

"Remember the Hogyoku and that pain the ass?"

"It hasn't been resolved yet, remember?"

"Why did your voice go back to normal?"

"The Ouin used up it's avatar, so it went back to being dormant," shrugged Yoru.

Ichigo walked up to Toshiro.

"Thank you, Kurosaki."

"I don't think he has any regrets."

Toshiro looked at them. Yoru grinned and tossed the Ouin at him. The white haired taicho caught it as easily as Yoru in his hand.

"This time, he got a fair chance to settle things. In life, we all have things we can't accept, you know? But how we deal with it is up to each individual. He was given a second chance, and he decided to come back here. Instead of someone deciding a fight for him, he wanted to settle things himself. So I think it's okay."

"He sure did put all of us through hell, though," snorted Yoru.

Toshiro chuckled. He couldn't deny that at all.

"Let's go back, Toshiro!"

Toshiro glared at them both.

"How many times do I have to remind you? It's Hitsugaya-taicho!"

The two brothers grinned at him in amusement. No matter how many times he repeated that, they would always treat him like a kid brother.

* * *

Yoruichi spotted her son and grinned at him.

"No need to hide it Mum. I already know all about...that."

"How did you find out?"

"I looked myself up out of boredom. I don't blame you in the least."

"So what happened to the...how did you put it again?"

"Glorified paperweight with godlike powers," snickered Yoru.

Yoruichi chuckled. It was a fairly apt description of the Ouin.

"Simply put, the thing will never have any power over me again."

"Mah mah. So what are you going to do now?"

Yoru grinned evilly.

"I'm going to ask the soutaicho to let me sick Zaraki on Hogwarts."

Yoruichi let that image sink in, and started cackling. That would be hilarious to watch indeed!


	16. Chapter 16

"_Dear Hermione,_

_Long time no owl! Sorry I haven't sent you anything in so long, but I have been so busy that I haven't had the time. How's the black hole doing without me to hang around with?_

_I'm sure you're probably worried I was kidnapped or something during summer vacation, but it couldn't be farther than the truth. I'm currently with my adopted Mum and having a blast, just ask Sirius!_

_I've been making friends with all sorts of people, and possibly a few allies against the bumbling idiot who calls himself a dark lord._

_With what I've had to fight these past few months, he's an ant._

_So how is Hogwarts treating you without me there? Has the homework become harder, with OWLs coming up?_

_Use Hedwig to send me a response back, since she is the only owl who can possibly find me at this point._

_Ta, _

_Harry."_

Hermione read the letter in disbelief. While she could get the joke concerning Ron being a black hole, she couldn't believe he waited so long to write her!

She got a quill and started writing her reply. Hedwig waited patiently for the girl to finish, before flying off.

Hermione frowned when she saw a bolt of red light try and hit the white owl. Hedwig avoided it with disturbing ease, despite having her back to it at the time.

* * *

Momo spotted Hedwig, who landed on her arm. The owl had come to accept Momo as one of the few people allowed to use her. She took the white bird to her captain, who grinned.

"Hello girl. So she sent me a reply after all?"

His face grew pale when he started to read it.

"Bloody hell... Yet another reason not to go home any time soon."

Yoru read with horror at the rather...descriptive...methods Hermione had written down. She was rather irate that he hadn't written her in so long.

"What is it Taicho?"

"Someone who scares me more than you when I insult _him,_" said Yoru bluntly.

Thankfully the letter was in romanji (English) otherwise, Momo would find out about Hermione and make his life hell.

Yoru looked at his desk in horror. Somehow his paperwork had tripled in less than an hour. Normally it barely reached his neck after his squad pranked someone.

Now it was well over his head. Momo's desk was worse than his, if that was possible.

"How the hell did _this_ happen?"

Momo winced.

"Sixth seat Ryusuke Shin pranked the soutaicho...and this is the work that he nearly destroyed."

"And why is there so much of it?"

"It's the budget information for squad eleven."

Yoru nodded. Now the amount made some sense.

Zaraki's squad was notorious for causing massive amounts of damage, and most of this appeared to be from his weekly sparring sessions with Ichigo and Shirosaki.

Yoru and Momo quietly went to work, and upon seeing the amount of papers on the desk their squad wisely avoided the office.

Yoru noted that around two in the morning Momo was starting to nod off. Seeing no point for his lieutenant to suffer through the same hell, he chirped lightly "Go take a nap. The evil papers will be there when you wake up."

She shook her head.

"I can make it an order if you want," he said lightly.

"I'm almost done."

"Just don't wear yourself out, or I will drag you to see Unohana-taicho," Yoru shrugged.

Momo winced, as he hoped, and got back to signing and placing the paper in the appropriate box. Yoru had, at some point when he was bored, charmed them to turn into either cranes, dragons, or butterflies when they were to be sent off.

It was one of the few things that Momo didn't mind about him. He always managed to keep her from being bored to death.

Of course she suspected he was behind the rather interesting reports after captain's meetings...

* * *

Hermione was being sent to Japan. Dumbledore had finally found where her friend had vanished off to, and he wanted him back. She was all too eager to go, for one reason.

The current DADA was a total unrepentant bitch who seemed to think they were all five year olds. She had easily earned the disgust of _every_ single house by the first word.

She had alienated every student in the school with her asinine rules. It was an unspoken rule to ignore her if possible. Everyone in the school (teachers included) called her Umbitch behind her back.

She sighed with relief when she was in Japan. While she had been sent to retrieve Harry, she had other plans in mind.

She was going to find a place to live here and stay. There was no chance she was going to return to the bigots who ruled the British Magical Societies.

As the best friend of Harry Potter, Hermione held a lot of say with the other muggleborns. If she found Japan to be to her liking, she would alert the others to come here instead of sticking around in England.

It had taken all of five minutes before she ran into serious trouble. There was some white masked monster which had been following her since she had left the air port, and she suspected it wasn't friendly in the least.

Finally she spotted a stretch of road where she could run, and immediately took off.

The monster realized she had started the chase, and ran after her, howling.

She could feel the nauseous breath on her neck when she heard a yelp of surprise and disbelief.

She ducked, and then looked behind her briefly.

Standing between her and the monster was Harry...at least it _looked_ like Harry.

He had cat ears, sharp claws and a strange scarf thing around his neck with bells at the ends. He was wearing a white coat of sorts with the Japanese symbol for the number five.

She watched him claw the mask in two, before he retracted them.

It was Harry alright. Though where he got that ridiculous black uniform she had no idea.

"Bloody hell... What are you doing here Hermione?"

She huffed.

"Officially I was sent to retrieve you."

"Unofficially?" he asked hopeful.

"Finding another community to live in. England has hit rock bottom, and Hogwarts has become insufferable of late."

"_Taicho!"_

A girl wearing a similar outfit to Harry's appeared, her hair in a tight bun.

"No, I am _not_ going to erase her memories Hinamori. There's actually no need to. She'd figure it out anyway."

Harry helped her up. And then took her to a small shop that hardly anyone seemed to notice.

"May as well get you up to speed," was all he would say before vanishing. The girl beside him (her badge had the same Japanese symbol as the one on his back) vanished with him.

"Konnichiwa!"

Hermione jumped. The only other person to pull that particular stunt on her was Ollivander, and she hated it then too.

"Where did Harry go?" she asked, annoyed.

"I don't know any Hari... Though I suspect it was Yoru-taicho who left you here."

"Who is Yoru?"

The man took out a photo of Yoru Shihouin and Ichigo Kurosaki during the rather amusing incident when the SWA had dragged several of them to the beach.

"What is Harry doing with that boy?"

Urahara blinked as things came together.

"What is your name miss?"

"Granger Hermione."

Which explained everything he needed to know. Yoru had been very descriptive of his friends back in England.

Once Hermione settled down (after finally figuring out _how_ Harry had evaded every single spell Dumbledore had tried to track him down) Urahara explained things to her. Yoru clearly felt it was easier to clue her in rather than to keep her out to figure the situation herself. (Cough_first and second year_Cough)

Around dinner, Yoru reappeared with several others. Practically everyone he was close to came. Rangiku was sitting next to Sirius, of course.

"So Urahara explained everything?"

Hermione glared at him in response.

"Why didn't you tell me yourself?"

Yoru didn't look upset at all as he said "Paperwork demons have been threatening my office all day. Excuse me if the need to vanquish them overrode your need to find out what has been happening since I left."

Ichigo and the other captains all snickered. Demon was as good a name as any for the massive amounts of paperwork they had to do every week.

Hermione huffed, clearly not believing that bit.

Yoru had an idea how to convince her that he wasn't joking.

"Hey Urahara, think the soutaicho will mind if I brought her to the soul society for a day?"

Toshiro coughed.

"You would have to fill everything out in quadruple, and sign three times as normal for her to come in legally."

"So I would have to have a repeat of the budget incident. No problem."

After that Hermione finally caught up with her friend, who she hadn't spoken to in nearly seven months.

At least she _finally_ had an explanation for the times he seemed to act out of character.

"So what are you going to do while in Japan, Hermione-chan?" asked Ichigo. He was rather close to the girl, even if it was indirectly.

"Find out if Japan is better than Europe, and possibly encourage the other muggleborns to transfer here or elsewhere. Hogwarts has become a total nightmare lately."

"How so?" asked Yoru, concerned.

"The new DADA, she is horrible. The Ministry put her there to torment us, I just know it. She treats _everyone_ like they're five, and has been creating idiotic rules left and right just to annoy us..." Hermione complained. Her rant continued for a good ten minutes.

Yoru was grinning, as he had a rather interesting solution to the 'Umbitch problem' Hogwarts was having. It would, however, scar the children for life.

Frankly he would enjoy their reaction.

"Hermione, can Dumbledore hire a teacher before the next term?"

"I think if one showed up at this point, he would hire them on the spot just to get rid of _her."_

"In that case, I have the perfect teacher for Hogwarts..."

The others stared at him in disbelief. Who was he going to send?

"And his name...is Kenpachi Zaraki."

"Oh dear kami...!" said Ichigo, before he burst out laughing.

It didn't take long for the others to crack up as well.

Zaraki was a bit... overzealous in his goal of having a real fight. He would scar the students in a few hours, if that.

"We are not sending that idiot into a school full of overweight, underdeveloped children," said Toshiro.

* * *

_(Flashback to two weeks ago in Hueco Mundo)_

Ulquiorra appeared before Aizen. He had a report to give, and he intended to show it before it faded from his mind.

The image of the black haired boy with green eyes had bothered him greatly.

Particularly when he realized he was looked at a mirror image of himself in soul reaper uniform.

Aizen watched the scene play out, amused. It seemed he was the only one to notice the similarities between himself and the boy wearing the lieutenant badge of squad two.

After that, he needed a short nap.

Ulquiorra lay down on the bed, throwing a ward around his room. He didn't know why or how he could do such things without speaking the incantation, but it had saved him so many times he didn't question it.

As soon as he closed his eyes, he felt the visions come. There was a reason he rarely attempted to sleep.

Visions of what he assumed were his past would always creep up on him. It happened more frequently now than before.

Out of all of them, only one truly soothed him. A vision of a pure white owl with only a few gray specks on it's wings. Like snow that had freshly fallen. His weary body reached out to touch the owl, but he couldn't grasp it at all.

He heard a chuckle in the back of his mind. So he delve deep inside himself. He sat in a meditative position to see why he kept getting these visions.

"_I wondered when you would show up. Yo."_

He looked across the room and saw the boy from before. He seemed perfectly relaxed for someone in the den of Espadas.

"Who are you?"

"_You should have at least guess who I was from the similarities between us."_

Here he chuckled deeply, as if amused by a thought only he had noticed.

"_These soul reapers claim to be all about balance. But they have no idea what Hollows really are. They kill them believing that they are mindless beasts incapable of coherent thought. But I have seen the truth."_

"What is that truth?"

"_You've come across Ichigo Kurosaki, yes?"_

Ulquiorra nodded. The boy appeared to be trash, though he hadn't gotten to fight him.

"_That boy is one of the rarest types of spiritual beings. He is both Hollow and Soul Reaper."_

Ulquiorra raised an eyebrow at that. To have both in his soul... Then it hit him.

"You don't mean..."

"_Humans can become either hollows or soul reapers depending on the way they died. Ichigo was born with a rare perfect balance of both powers. Fortunately, we have found a way to keep Shirosaki under control by letting him loose on Hueco Mundo."_

Ulquiorra remembered the odd reports of an Arrancar that was completely white teaming up with a soul reaper with claws. And how he only went after those with gillian level or above spiritual pressure. They usually appeared near the forest area.

Perhaps it was time to see if those reports were true.

"Shall we continue this later, face to face?"

The boy grinned at him, glad that he had caught on so quickly.

"_I can't wait to finish this discussion in a more interesting environment, Ulquiorra Cifer."_

* * *

_(One week ago, in Hueco Mundo)_

Ulquiorra used Sonido to arrive in the spot where most of the reports had placed the mysterious white Arrancar.

So when he came face to face with what appeared to be a Hollow Ichigo Kurosaki, he was understandably surprised. More so when the boy who had fought him ran alongside wearing the same haori that Aizen once had.

"Oh good, you did come. Shiro, think you can handle these wimps without me?"

"_Piece of cake. You are going to help me prank Ichigo later right?"_

"When have I ever let the chance to do so go?" teased the boy.

Shiro let loose an insane cackle and went all out on the Menos who began to circle them.

"Who are you?"

"My name is currently Yoru Shihouin, newly instated captain of squad five. You are Ulquiorra Cifer, one of Aizen's Espada."

The two nodded, acknowledging the other. Since Ulquiorra wanted answers and not a fight, Yoru sat down.

"What is the common element between Hollows and Shinigami?" asked Yoru suddenly.

"Both may substantiate swords, and possess spiritual powers," answered Ulquiorra.

"Yes, but that is not what they have in common. The true answer is that they were all once Human."

Ulquiorra didn't understand why that was important.

"Humans...are weak strictly speaking. They laugh, they cry, the ally themselves to hopeless causes, the betray one another without blinking... but through all that they maintain a certain amount of empathy."

"Hollows are nothing but emotions run rampant, driven by an endless hunger," stated Ulquiorra.

"This is true, but that could also be said of humans as well. I have noticed something that no one else has. Or perhaps they chose not to see this fact."

Ulquiorra was silent.

"Hollows and Soul Reapers... they are one and the same. What no one has noticed is that when a soul forms into the shape it will remain for the rest of it's existence, the unused potential has to go somewhere."

Ulquiorra eyes widened. He was starting to see what the boy was getting at.

"You're saying..."

"You...are the other half of my soul. Our swords merely reflect our potential of what we can do."


	17. Chapter 17

Ulquiorra looked at the ceiling. Grimmjow was planning an attack on the world of the living. He wanted no part of it.

His thoughts of Yoru Shihouin, the other part of his soul, would often drive his waking actions.

Yoru...was nothing like he expected. He did not hate his darker side, he didn't condemn Ulquiorra for being what he was. He accepted that they were two parts of a soul that had been split evenly down the middle.

Yoru often escorted Shiro, the dark side of Kurosaki to Hueco Mundo to regain his spiritual power. Apparently in exchange for giving up the power he inherited from Ichigo's soul, he was allowed to run around freely in the world of the living.

The boy was...kind. But he could tell that the child wasn't stupid.

Yoru was kind because he had seen the human version of hell. He was kind because he knew what it was like to be truly alone with the world against you.

But he also knew that trust should never be given lightly.

Ulquiorra knew this because in a sense, he was still Yoru.

That boy had learned the world's harshest lessons while he was still a child. He had learned through repeated attempts of seeing good in others. And he had narrowly almost lost his chance at seeing heaven.

There was no denying what Ulquiorra would do if Yoru and Ichigo won this war that was to come.

He would abandon Hueco Mundo and seek his freedom with his lighter half.

If Yoru could still be called that.

Over the course of the past few weeks, Yoru had listened to Ulquiorra and actually added intelligent input.

So when he brought up the mysterious angel that sometimes brought him great peace of mind, Yoru's face took on a strange look like he was trying not to laugh.

When he composed himself, Yoru explained the reaction.

"Hedwig...well I suppose the Japanese equivalent is Otome, is more of a Valkyrie than an angel. Though she would appreciate the compliment."

Ulquiorra had paused then, before saying exactly what was on his mind at the time.

"Can I see her?"

Yoru had smiled in such a way that the ever present hunger had abated quite a bit.

"Next time we come to let Shiro loose, I'll bring her. Should be safe enough with you around."

No one really questioned his abrupt leaving of the towers. Since he was merely trying to verify the reports of what he suspected was Ichigo training, they could care less.

They didn't know he had already found the truth.

* * *

Yoru was waiting with a bored Shirosaki.

And on his shoulder was the white angel he remembered in the rare dreams he had. She took one look at him and launched herself into the air.

As if by memory, Ulquiorra lifted his hand, and she landed perfectly out of habit. Otome seemed to enjoy his attention. She certainly didn't seem to care that he was a hollow, and that his aura was almost entirely negative in nature.

Shiro ran off to kill more hollows.

During the times he spent here, Ichigo learned more about fighting other people with soul reaper and hollow abilities with Shinji and the others.

Yoru would have joined them, but he had to deal with both his squad and hiding a secret from the commander general.

If the man ever suspected what he was, then he would have been stripped of his rank and sent to the King without hesitation.

And that was something Yoru didn't want. He liked the soul society. He already knew that they couldn't keep him from staying in the world of the living...he was still alive after all...but they could keep him from leading the fifth squad and being normal.

Shiro returned to Yoru's side. His cloak had become stained as usual.

"_Yo Emperor. Are you really going to leave your girl here with him?"_

Ulquiorra raised an eye at the nickname for Yoru.

"Otome would be perfectly safe here with him. I have little doubt in my mind that he would protect her from harm. Besides, this way any tracers that idiot could have placed on her to find me will become useless."

Since Yoru had met him, and they began talking as equals, Ulquiorra's memories of his life as the darker part of Yoru's soul came back to him in a much faster rate.

Soul Reapers never suspected that if they were to meet and kill their hollow selves, then they were essentially killing a part of their own soul.

Most hollows that went to the world of the living were from the konpaku spirits that lived in the Rukongai. Any hollow which gained power in Hueco Mundo gave it's soul reaper half enough of a boost to _become_ a soul reaper.

And yet the soul reapers hadn't noticed that fact. It spoke volumes that they had let the relationship between the two species go unchecked.

"Why did you never reveal this theory to the others?"

"Because if I did, they would undoubtedly try to prove it, or debase it as crazy. Besides, Kurotsuchi does enough experimenting on hollows without adding this to it."

Ulquiorra was silent before he asked "Are you truly going to allow her to stay here?"

Yoru had a tired look as he said "The land I was sent to is at war, and they fully intend to make me a martyr. The last thing I want is for her to get caught up in the battles and die trying to protect me."

"You... _We_ love her too much to allow that to happen," said Ulquiorra.

Yoru nodded. Unlike him, his hollow self wasn't tied down by as many human qualms. If Dumbledore tried to use his beloved owl as leverage, then he would find himself on the short end of a sword.

"Just to be clear, Yoru... I will not spy for you. I do not fully trust Aizen, but I will not give away any plans against the soul society."

"Fair enough. Spying would put you at too much risk anyway, and by extension place her at risk as well. Let's just agree to put our differences against each other aside on the battlefield and leave it at that, shall we?"

Ulquiorra nodded. It was as close as a soul reaper could get to a truce with a hollow under the conditions the world had thrust upon them.

Otome understood why Yoru was leaving her with his darker half. But as long as she was with her master (no matter _what_ form he took) she was fine by that.

Ulquiorra disappeared using sonido, with Otome firmly grasping his shirt from behind. Her wings were firmly kept together to keep from catching a draft.

(Ulquiorra would later realize that as long as she remained on his cloak from behind, she was practically invisible to the others. Apparently the white color scheme for Espada played to his advantage in hiding her.)

* * *

Yoru knew he would have to face it eventually. He just didn't have to like it.

The commander general was apparently wondering about the report he had gotten from the Royal Guard about the Ouin's power suddenly dropping. Like it was in a dormant state.

(Apparently some fool child in the Royal realm had touched it without any repercussions happening...which set off having someone double check the Ouin to see what was wrong with it.)

So in order to head off any chance of being sent to the twelfth division, he decided to go straight to the Royal Palace with the Ouin's power and head off what would undoubtedly ruin the rest of his afterlife.

(Did they honestly think he wouldn't see that one coming?)

Servants and Royal Guard gave him an odd look. He had arrived without wearing his captain's uniform, to keep anyone from realizing who he was. His pace was confident and calm, like he had every right to be there.

So when the only person to actually _demand_ to know what he wanted with the King finally made his presence known, he just gave them his best impersonation of Byakuya when dealing with idiots beneath him.

"My business is with the king alone. Do not attempt to bother me again, unless you wish to have your head removed from your body," said Yoru.

Oddly enough, it almost felt natural to act like this. Yoru knew why, but he didn't have to use it all the time.

Recognizing the tone, the man backed down. Yoru walked into the throne room unimpeded and faced the man behind the throne.

What he said next would rock the foundations of the Royal Palace.

"Hello Father. I have returned."

* * *

The King was impressed and relieved to see his missing son return...though in a different body than before. The boy had grabbed the Ouin one fateful day in order to protect his sister from accidentally touching it.

It was a brave act from his usually reckless son.

But the Ouin never killed anyone simply by touching it. Its power tended to send the soul far from the body and reincarnate it repeatedly until the task that soul had left to do was finished.

Which is why they had set up a watch for his son's soul.

He should have known the boy would find his own way back.

"So...you have returned."

"Not permanently at this point, no. I still have much to do back in the world of the living before I am ready to properly return."

"It is for the best. I can see that your soul has not fully returned to what it once was, though the process has already begun. By which name do you call yourself?"

"Shihouin Yoru, formerly Harry James Potter."

"You were not born in Japan, as we had believed?"

Yoru shook his head.

"The Ouin sent me far from the Seireitei into the domain of Avalon. I would still be there had my soul not connected with another."

"Who is this other soul?"

"Kurosaki Ichigo... The son of a former soul reaper captain and a hollow who chose to be human."

"An acceptable soul for you to bond with."

"Indeed. I only came here as a preemptive strike. I do not intend to come back because someone has forced me to."

"You wish to attain the age you vanished at? A wise decision. Youth is often prone to make hasty decisions."

"It's not that. I want to learn for myself what is truly needed to rule. We were raised here under the careful guidance of many who had to learn by themselves. But we never truly understood or realized why we had to learn those lessons. I want first hand experience...even if the result ends in my death."

"Experience over learning from others. You will make a wise King when you decide to remember what you truly are."

"Thank you, father."

"I will rescind the order to find you. May you grow at your own pace... Yoru Shihouin."

Yoru bowed, and left. He had said what was needed to be said.

* * *

Yoru waited at the usual spot. Shirosaki had to help Ichigo in his synchronization attacks, so he was alone.

"Did something good happen?" asked Ulquiorra.

"The King has rescinded the order to find me. I'll be able to act on my own until I'm truly ready to go home. How's Otome?"

Ulquiorra actually grinned.

"See for yourself."

Yoru gaped when he realized where his owl was.

"When did she learn that trick?"

Hedwig had learned to walk instead of fly. Though there was nothing wrong with her wings. She was able to run at Yoru at great speed...

It was actually sort of amusing to watch.

"How did she learn to do that?"

"I've found that she blends in rather well with my uniform. No one even realized she was there."

Suddenly they felt the presence of another. Hedwig returned to her perch behind Ulquiorra as another presence appeared.

It was the former sexta, Grimmjow. Tosen had completely removed his arm.

"So this is where you always ran to. Funny, he doesn't look like an Espada class hollow to me..." sneered Grimmjow.

Ulquiorra tensed.

"So this is the guy who kicked Ichigo's ass. Not bad."

That completely threw the two espada for a loop.

"My idiot brother needed a good kick in the ass to remind him that he should never stop training."

Ulquiorra looked at Yoru, and finally said...

"I'm sure you already know what happened to that girl."

"Yeah, I saw it. Could care less though. Orihime was never meant to be a fighter, and you guys just saved me the trouble of finding a way to keep her out of the way. At least this way I can have Tatsuki fully motivated to improve her powers."

Grimmjow looked at Yoru in disbelief.

"You don't care that one of your comrades was just kidnapped by us?"

"If she had been taken by someone who only intends to kill her later, then yeah, I might have been concerned. But it was Ulquiorra who took her. She's in relatively safe hands. It also means we don't have to watch out for her later during the battles ahead, because she's already being used as leverage for my idiot brother."

Ulquiorra looked at Yoru in amusement.

"You already know what Aizen has planned then."

"She's bait. Ichigo comes to rescue her, leaving Karakura without it's best defender. Her fate is still tied to the outcome of the battle, no matter which side has her. At least this way she won't get in our way."

Grimmjow couldn't believe what he was hearing. Then he noticed the uniform on Yoru's back.

"Ah, that explains it. Figures you would take over squad five."

Yoru snorted.

"I'm nothing like Aizen, the bloody idiot. I actually give a damn what happens to my subordinates."

"Then why are you here?"

"Because even captains need a break sometimes. Besides, this is the only place I can practice without that damn Commander General hovering over me. Apparently he has started to figure out who I actually am, and it's annoying."

"And who are you?" smirked Grimmjow.

Yoru looked at him with amusement.

"The son of the very man Aizen wants to kill for his throne. I am the missing Prince of the Royal Family."

"And you hang out with Vasto Lords for kicks?"

"Partially. That...and because I actually enjoying talking to my dark side from time to time."

Grimmjow finally noted the similarities between Ulquiorra and Yoru.

"You two are...?"

"Soul reapers and Hollows are born from the same soul. They just refuse to acknowledge that fact," said Yoru.

Hedwig walked onto Ulquiorra's shoulder. Upon seeing her, Grimmjow exclaimed "I knew there was something on your back! They didn't believe me!"

"I would like to make a deal with you, Grimmjow," said Yoru, and idea coming to him.

"I'm listening..."

"In exchange for keeping your silence about this meeting, when the war is over I will help you annoy the living hell out my idiot brother. I'm sure Shirosaki will love hanging out with someone like you."

"Shirosaki?"

Yoru grinned evilly.

"You didn't know? My brother happens to have a hollow side we call Shirosaki. We usually let him out in the world of the living so he will behave."

"So the mystery espada class hollow that keeps appearing here is...?"

"Shirosaki devouring the weaker gillian and higher class to improve his own powers."

"Kid, you have a deal! You two are way too interesting to just let die!" laughed Grimmjow.

Yoru grinned.

"I can't wait to see how you would react to those _twins._"

Ulquiorra couldn't help his snort.

"If you introduced them, the world would end _long_ before Aizen fully awakens the Hogyoku."

"Point, but at least it wouldn't be a boring end."

Grimmjow gave the two of them a look.

"What twins, and why would you say something like that?"

"Fred and George... Purveyors of total chaos and mass humiliation. Also known as the terror twins. They supply Shirosaki with enough pranks to make even the soul society fear him."

"And he...is evil enough to consider introducing you to them."

"Chaos is my specialty."

Grimmjow laughed, and the three ended up playing poker for the next two hours.


	18. Chapter 18

Rukia looked at Yoru in disbelief.

"You played poker for three hours with the guy who beat up your brother and the one who kidnapped Orihime? Are you insane?"

"In what terms? Urahara insane or Kurotsuchi insane?"

"What difference does it make?" asked Rukia.

"Urahara is fun to mess with, Kurotsuchi is just plain boring," said Yoru bluntly.

Ichigo and Shirosaki started cracking up.

"Rukia, you still don't get it do you?"

Rukia and Renji gave him a look.

"Do you know what Ichigo and Mamoru's name means?"

"Ichi as in First, Go as in protector. Mamoru by itself means Shield," said Ichigo.

"Exactly. What you don't seem to realize is that names have more power than you can comprehend. A name gives meaning, meaning gives strength, strength promotes growth. It's an unending cycle of power."

"_There's a reason why the Emperor named me Mamoru," _ grinned Shirosaki.

The three looked at Yoru in disbelief.

"I've been meaning to ask, but why does he always refer to you as Emperor?"

"He calls you King, since you rule the inner world where he was born and occasionally lives in. He calls me Emperor because he recognizes that I have the power to control and wipe him out at any time. I can do more damage _without_ using Cheshire than I can with him. I just don't like advertising that fact."

"Yoru...who are you?" asked Renji.

Yoru smirked.

"Someone who outranks all the Noble houses combined, yet prefers to stay the captain of Squad Five."

"Didn't that guy you went to see last month give you something?"

"Ichigo, for the last time if I pulled it out, then Zero would appear and it annoys them. The only time I will ever use _that_ call is if I have absolutely no other choice in the matter."

"Zero?"

"Too much information can be bad for you," said Yoru quickly.

"So we are all agreed to rescue Orihime?" asked Ichigo.

"You know the soutaicho won't allow us."

"Relax. Orihime will be fine. What you don't know is that Ulquiorra did me a favor by kidnapping her in the first place," said Yoru.

Renji, Ichigo and Rukia gave him a look.

"Orihime is a healer, but unlike squad four she is no fighter. Her shield is impressive, yes, but her attack strength is too pathetic for the level we'll be fighting at. She's just too kind for fighting, and that's the truth."

"How do you know the Espada won't eat her for her powers?" demanded Rukia.

"Because I happen to know Ulquiorra better than you do... After all..._he_ is _me._"

Ichigo understood better than the others did.

"So he's Shirosaki to you?"

"Exactly."

Ichigo stood up. He could accept that. It seemed he was the only one to notice the similarities between the hollow and his brother.

"So who are we taking with us?"

"Momo will assist Squad ten and Tatsuki will fight alongside the soul reapers guarding the pillars. The advance force to attack Hueco Mundo will consist of Uryu, Ichigo, Chad and myself. Rukia, you and Renji will come in after us, followed by Squad twelve, six, eleven and four. The other captains are defending Karakura while we attack Hueco Mundo and destroy the Hogyoku before it fully awakens."

"Who deals with Ulquiorra and the others?" asked Renji.

"Ichigo, if you can get him to lose his form, he will have to return to me before he can fight again. He and I have an understanding not to attack each other if we happen to be in the same area. Also, I'll leave Grimmjow to you as well, since he has been itching for a fight with you since you managed to hurt him."

Yoru got up to leave. He had work to do, and not a lot of time to do it before the battle began.

"And before I forget... the Visoreds will be assisting the captains at some point. They have Aizen to thank for their condition in the first place."

"What are you saying?" said Ichigo.

"Ichigo... there is nothing about the past or the present that is forever hidden from me. Thanks to Cheshire's power over mirrors, I can find out crucial information. I know why Central 46 declared Urahara, Yoruichi and the others traitors and tried to kill them."

Yoru used shunpo before they could ask.

* * *

Hinamori was about to head to the front line when she sensed her captain's presence. She tried to turn, but he kept a firm hand on her shoulder.

"_Momo, what I am about to tell you stays between us. I have told Toshiro that you will be joining the front lines under his command until I return. But if you encounter an enemy which you can't beat on your own, then I want you to call me immediately."_

"How will I call you, captain?" she asked.

"_I am going to give you a name. If you use it, I will fly to your side even if I have to rip apart Hueco Mundo to do so. That name is..."_

Hinamori heard him, but she couldn't remember the name.

"_Your sword will give you the name when you truly have need of it. Do not let your pride get in the way of your survival. Good luck."_

And with that, he was gone.

* * *

Urahara looked at Yoru with amusement. The boy had long since looked up their past and accepted it. When Yoruichi had asked why, Yoru gave an interesting answer.

"_Pasts are what define us. If I were to condemn you for how you lived you life in the past, then you in turn could look down on me for almost becoming a martyr for a cause I didn't believe in. So I see no need to care about who you were."_

Yoru had no difficultly running through the world. He had done it so many times it was second nature by now. Then again, he could have saved them all a trip by using Cheshire.

(Who was a bit put out that Yoru no longer needed his world crossing ability as much.)

"So this is Hueco Mundo..."

"Actually we're in one of the unused gates. Hueco Mundo has an actual sky and is mostly desert," Yoru informed him.

Three pairs of eyes looked at him in disbelief.

"What? I've been taking Shiro here every week so he'll work with Ichigo. You really think I wouldn't explore this place out of boredom?"

"Point."

"Anyway... Chad, Uryu, I want you two to deal with the guardians. They only leave me and Shiro alone because of Shirosaki's power levels."

It didn't take long for the two to kill the guardians...though they had to run because the gate almost crashed down on them.

"Welcome...to the real Hueco Mundo. Though this is only a fraction of the place..."

"How much have you seen?"

"Mostly the forest of Menos. Shiro seems to have acquired a taste for those. Anyway, I mostly avoided this area because I didn't want Aizen to find out that Shirosaki had been gaining strength."

"Because he might have tried to tempt him with power?" asked Uryu.

"More along the lines of tried to kill him. Being in here so often has given me more intel on Hollows and their world. Like the fact that there are three different classes of Espada."

Yoru paused. Apparently Ulquiorra was in a meeting of sorts.

_'Would you please get out of my mind?'_

_'...Is that tea any good?'_

Ulquiorra resisted the urge to snort. Trust his lighter half to ask something asinine like that.

_'It's acceptable. Please leave.'_

_'I have no clue how I got in here to begin with. Would it help if I mostly ignore what's going on?'_

_'No.'_

_'Then can I at least stay long enough to see if Aizen has the same kind of boring ass meetings like the soul society?'_

_'Fine, but next time this happens I am looking through your eyes.'_

_'Fair enough.'_

The meeting lasted less than an hour. But Yoru had already grown bored within the first five minutes.

'Why is it that the guys in charge always have to state the obvious? Can't they just get to the point?'

_'Don't know, don't care. Please leave already.'_

'Unfortunately this situation seems a little too familiar...'

Ulquiorra resisted the urge to facepalm.

'I think that until our souls are reconnected, I can't leave. How about one of us puts a shield that blanks out sound and sight?'

The Vasto Lord did that in a heartbeat, relieved that Yoru's presence had gone undetected.

* * *

Yoru looked out the horizon, and spotted a familiar sight. The idiots were at it again.

"Hello Nel-chan," grinned Yoru.

Nel barreled into him at high speed, but he took it easily.

"Yoru-nii-chan!" she squealed.

Ichigo gave him a look, trying not to laugh.

"Hey Nel, remember when I said I would introduce Shirosaki's good side...?"

She nodded rapidly. Much to the amusement of Yoru and Ulquiorra, Shirosaki had only one real weakness.

He liked little kids too much to attack them. He had been taking a break with Yoru when they had come across Nel playing what she and her brothers called 'Endless Tag'...which involved them chasing Nel around like idiots.

Shiro and Yoru originally misinterpreted the whole thing, but they resolved it before Shiro ate the three hollows chasing Nel. After a while Nel and her brothers ended up adopting them into their family, much to the amusement of Yoru and Shiro.

"Hey Nel...we're here to rescue a friend. Think Barabara could give us a lift?"

Nel nodded rapidly, and climbed onto Yoru's shoulder. Ichigo took one look at the sight and burst out laughing. Uryu and Chad didn't seem to realize the resemblance just yet.

"I know, I know... I look like Kenpachi only with better sense of direction..." said Yoru.

Inside Ichigo, Shiro was laughing his ass off.

The odd sandworm creature that had been alongside Nel and her brothers let them climb onto his body. He was much faster than walking or using any speed techniques.

"So what's the deal with Nel?" asked Ichigo.

Nel kept climbing all over Yoru, and the boy allowed it.

"All the members of this family were former Espada. Best guess was that somehow or other they were thrown out, but they hang around because the hollows are a bit stronger around here. Hollows gain power and often sustenance by eating other hollows. Reishi may allow them to move freely, but it doesn't kept them from attacking each other."

Which completely through Uryu for a loop.

"You...spend way too much time here," said Ichigo.

"Only place the soutaicho can't boss me around. Besides, they allow me to come here all the time to keep your hollow self in check."

"I'm amazed those idiots at Central 46 didn't try to ban you from becoming a captain..." said Uryu.

"The would try and fail. While the Central 46 is the main judicial body in the Seireitei, even they can't counteract orders from above," smirked Yoru.

"I thought the first captain wasn't above their laws?" asked Chad.

"He isn't. I _am_ though. Anyone with enough clearance to actually see the King of the soul society in person without a guard and keep his weapon is well above whatever laws they try to make."

Ichigo stared at his brother.

"That's who you went to see? How the hell did you get in?"

"First off, anyone who is accepted by the Ouin and carries it's mark can get in without the key. Secondly, he had a longstanding order to find me for the past four hundred years or so."

"Hah?" seemed to be the general consensus.

"Ichigo... Did you know that when I originally got my soul reaper powers, I went through the same process as you?"

"Really? So Yoruichi put you through three days of hell too?"

"More like ten hours," said Yoru.

"What?"

"After I got my spirit energy up, she shattered my chain of fate, which had somehow gotten tied up with a partial soul. That soul became the most twisted looking hollow I have ever seen."

"And?"

"Immediately after the smoke cleared I was a soul reaper. I never _went_ into the Shattered Shaft like you."

"Wait, how is that possible?" asked Uryu.

"Because all of my hollow powers had already been used up in the darker half of my soul. I _couldn't_ become a hollow without those."

"Then where did they go?" asked Chad.

Here Yoru grinned evilly, as he knew he was going to enjoy their reactions immensely.

"Ulquiorra Cifer."

Seeing their stares of disbelief (except from Ichigo) Yoru explained.

"Around two hundred years ago, my soul was split into two parts. One went into Hueco Mundo and became Ulquiorra. The other was reborn into a child of two magic using people in the West. Naturally I have done my best to keep my birth name a secret from the idiots in command."

"How the hell did you manage that?" asked Uryu.

"Simple. I helped him. The only people who even know what he was originally born as are Ichigo, Isshin, Yoruichi and myself. Oh, and the Weasly twins of course."

Uryu couldn't react to that well enough.

Suddenly a hollow out of sand appeared. It took one look at Yoru, yelped and ran like hell.

Everyone except Nel and her brothers looked at him.

"What? I told you I come here often, and they know well enough not to piss me off."

Rukia and Renji appeared soon after, giving Yoru an amused look.

"Heard about the sandstorms I take it?" he asked, amused.

"Byakuya warned us," shrugged Renji.

"Hot tempered idiot, I swear..."

Ichigo and those who knew Byakuya well gave him a disbelieving look.

"Remind me to show you his childhood sometime. I haven't laughed that hard in a looong time..." snickered Yoru.

Suddenly he grinned, and held up a mirror. It showed a boy with only a small hair tie trying to improve his sword work.

* * *

"_A guest...?"_

_When the boy felt her bosom on his face, he swung his sword at her._

"_YOU DEVIL CAT!"_

"_I came all the way out here to play with you, and that's how you greet me you brat?" laughed Yoruichi._

"_Shut up! I didn't ask you to come here! I'm the future head of the Kuchiki family! I have no time for games!" shouted the boy._

"_Are you sure?" asked Yoruichi smugly, stealing his hair tie._

_The boy swung his sword at her._

"_WHY YOU!"_

_Yoruichi cackled._

"_If its future head can't keep a girl from stealing his hair string, then the Kuchiki family is in big trouble!"_

"_Don't move Yoruichi Shihouin... I can perform shunpo and..."_

"_You lose, Byakuya Kuchiki!" she laughed as she ran off._

"_I see... so you're goading me. All right, then see for yourself...that my shunpo surpasses yours!"_

_His grandfather mused on the boy's temper, and went to have tea._

* * *

Ichigo, Rukia and Renji all stared...before laughing their asses off.

"Remind me to ask Yoruichi for stories about my brother later... That was too funny!" snickered Rukia.

"Or you could see them for yourself...!" laughed Yoru.

"Hard to believe old sourpuss was that hotheaded!" cackled Ichigo.

They all had fun poking at Byakuya while Ichigo and Renji ruined the wall.

Since Yoru had no intentions of leaving Nel and her brothers alone, he took her with him and Ichigo. One brother followed Renji, the other followed Uryu.

What they didn't realize (something Yoru hadn't had bothered to notice) was that they were in the territory of fallen Espadas. Most that roamed there were well in the hundred range.


	19. Chapter 19

"You know Ichigo, I just had a rather interesting thought..." smirked Yoru.

"What is it, and why do you have the look that scares anyone who has been around your division whenever you are bored?" asked Ichigo promptly.

"Can you imagine...the damage Nel and Yachiru could do when properly prepped?"

"Oh dear kami... You aren't seriously going to release Yachiru _and_ Nel with sugar highs are you?"

"On the European magical community, bloody hell yes. Perhaps that will keep the old goat far away from me."

"Now that I would happily assist you with."

Suddenly a crash appeared from above. An Espada class hollow had just made an entrance.

"Ichigo, you get first round," said Yoru promptly.

"Deal."

With Yoru keeping an eye on Nel (who seemed to view Ichigo as the saner version of Shirosaki, not that that was far off the mark either way) he planned ahead for all the damage he could do to Britain and their idiotic policies.

So much chaos...so little time to cause it.

* * *

"Why is it...that the second Espada we happen to run into here is _you_?" asked Yoru.

Ulquiorra looked at him with some confusion.

"Ichigo, you'll have to deal with him. We're under a cease fire arrangement at the moment," said Yoru, waving him off.

"Huh?"

Yoru stood by and watched his brother attack his hollow self. He couldn't attack Ulquiorra. Not if he wanted to stay sane. There was only one problem.

Ulquiorra was more than a match for his brother. He took him out with a single doom blast.

Fortunately Grimmjow appeared with Orihime in tow.

Nel, Orihime and Yoru watched with morbid fascination as the two fought. Ichigo could finally go all out with Grimmjow by syncing up with Shirosaki.

He just didn't like the idea of allowing his hollow self too much freedom over their body. He was terrified he would lose himself completely if he did.

"Hey Nel... How would you like to help me inspire massive amounts of chaos and anarchy?" asked Yoru, grinning evilly.

Orihime had only seen that look on his face once... She was loathed to admit this, but Ichigo was right when he had said his brother could turn into a demon when he was plotting something to cause chaos.

"What would it involve Yoru-nii?"

"You, your brothers and massive amounts of sugar and caffiene...oh, and your favorite game of endless tag," stated Yoru simply.

Orihime twitched. Nel reminded her of Yachiru...and giving massive amounts of sugar and caffiene to someone like her was tantamount to a death sentence in the Seireitei.

(Well, death by Unohana at any rate. Kenpachi not only didn't care about his lieutenant's sugar highs, he wholeheartedly encouraged any idiot who caused it.)

Orihime did shoot Yoru a look.

"How is it that you got here and yet don't have a scratch?" she finally asked.

"I come here roughly every week to keep Ichigo's darker side under control. He gets his murderous impulses out where it's relatively safe for everyone else, and Ichigo has some time to himself for a while. It's a win win thing."

"Then you knew when I was...?"

"Orihime, I won't lie to you. I thanked Ulquiorra for taking you out of the battlefield. Though I wasn't too pleased by his methods..."

She looked shocked and betrayed by his admittance.

"Why?"

"Because to be honest, you are too weak to fight. You are more of a defender/healer class user than a power user. Tsubaki wouldn't have been enough to take out enemies like Espada before he was destroyed with a single hand. But as long as Ulquiorra was watching over you as a hostage, you were relatively safer and out of the way."

She didn't like his bluntness one bit.

"Aizen wouldn't kill you outright until after it was all said and done. And Ulquiorra apparently likes you enough to keep a close eye on you even with Aizen's orders."

She obviously didn't know whether to feel offended or relieved.

"Face the facts Orihime. While you are our friend and we trust you with out lives, the sad fact is that with your weak battle power you are a liability on the battlefield. With you playing a relatively safe role like hostage, we can concentrate on beating Aizen while knowing that he would keep you safe until the end," said Yoru.

At least the orange haired girl knew when to keep silent on the matter. So she changed the subject.

"Who on Earth managed to annoy you so much you're willing to release the hollow version of Yachiru on a sugar high?"

Yoru scowled.

"It's a part of my past that only Ichigo would care to explain, provided I give him permission. Let's just say I have too many bad memories of the West that need to be resolved. Besides...those guys could use the wake up call."

Yoru's smirk turned sadistic and cruel as he imagined the hell Nel could unleash on Magical England and the surrounding countries.

The best part of his fantasy was his own knowledge that Avalon couldn't do a damn thing about it, since he was a native of the country asking for outside help. They might be pissed at him for a while, but in truth there was very little they could do about it.

He was after all, the boy-who-lived. He may as well put his unwanted fame to good use.

* * *

"It's about time you lot arrived, Kenpachi!" yelled Yoru.

Nel was no longer on his shoulder, as she had briefly remembered who she once was to deal with on of the Vasto Lords. The same one who took away her memory.

Fortunately for his sanity, Kenpachi and the other captains _finally_ arrived.

Yoru only kept half his attention on the battle before him. He could safely ignore Ichigo, his brother could get up and walk away if he had to, but Nel was still out like a light. Yoru used Cheshire to carefully grab her and return her to him. He didn't want Ichigo and Nel hurt by stray forces.

Ichigo of course had grabbed onto Cheshire's claws in order to reach his brother faster.

"Would you like me to use Bankai on you?" asked Yoru sweetly.

"If you wouldn't mind," said Ichigo sourly.

Yoru smirked.

"_Lead our allies through the mirrored maze, Kagami no Neko!"_

Yoru's healing ability fixed up both Ichigo and Nel. Though her mask was still the same as ever.

"Yoru-nii?" she asked tiredly.

"You can sleep on my shoulder Nel."

She promptly went back to sleep, though her energy was starting to recover much faster.

Suddenly Yoru stiffened. Ichigo looked at his brother with concern.

"What is it?"

"I gave Momo's sword my birth name in case she got into trouble. Or in over her head. She just called it out."

"Go. Take Nel with you and I'll get Orihime."

"Agreed."

Yoru vanished without a sound, using the Ouin's power to leave Hueco Mundo.

He was the only one who could get there in time.

* * *

"That... is the ugliest damn thing I have ever encountered. I can see why you used that safety net I gave you," said Yoru.

He had reappeared in the fake Karakura in time to stop a blow from landing on his lieutenant. Rangiku was seriously injured, and if she wasn't treated she could die.

Nel stirred in the presence of such power.

"Nel, can you keep an eye on these two for me?"

Hinamori looked surprised that her captain would dare allow an Espada class to watch over them.

"Will Nel get sweets?"

"Yes, you will get several sweets and be introduced to a new friend," said Yoru.

The thing before him was nothing short of a monster. It was a miracle Rangiku had survived the first blow.

And there was only one way to save Rangiku before she died again.

It was a good thing Ichigo had asked Yoru to use his healing Bankai already. It was still in effect.

Hinamori gasped when her captain hit Rangiku with a sickly green light. (She had no idea it was the same color as the infamous killing curse in Britain.)

She almost clocked him or worse, when she realized Rangiku was up...and her wound was nowhere to be seen.

"How...?"

"My bankai has two released states. One for enemies and one for allies. I already had the one for allies up and running when you had the sense to call for me."

The monster seemed to take offense to his presence...a quick look explained all he needed to know about it.

Since he really didn't want to deal with the thing (which looked remotely like the forest god from the movie _Princess Mononoke_) he decided to take the short route out.

He would blast the thing.

Hinamori watched as he started using a rather high level kido to attack the thing with. She almost screamed when she saw the claw about to hit her captain.

Yoru didn't even blink as he raised his arm, blocking the attack. Unfortunately, it broke his arm in three places.

Yoru used his free arm to blast the monster before him into tiny pieces, then turned into a basilisk to melt the rest. Before the three Espadas could react to his sudden transformation, he launched himself into the air and hit them all with his venom.

Their screams were rather horrifying to hear.

* * *

Barragan, the Espada with the King's crown, got up. He was not happy.

Yoru returned to Hinamori, wincing as his arm made the pain known.

"And I thought being bitten by that damn basilisk when I was twelve hurt like hell..." he grumbled.

Momo paused from inspecting his arm to give him a look.

"You were bitten...by a basilisk...when you were twelve. How the hell did you survive?"

"A phoenix happened to have come into the chamber I was in about fifteen minutes earlier?" said Yoru. He winced, as the pain really made itself known.

Momo either didn't notice or didn't care that Yoru was cursing up a blue streak at the now very dead Espada. It was their left arms that created that damn thing.

Kira appeared, as he was one of those assigned to guard the pillars. Fortunately he used to be in Squad four a while back, as he got to work on Yoru's left arm.

"Why is it that my bankai can heal anyone else and give them more energy and yet it can't heal any damage done to me?" complained Yoru.

"Because everyone had to have some flaws, or else we would kill them for being too perfect," said Rangiku with a smirk.

"Like how you're a lazy cat who drinks too much?" said Yoru with a scowl.

"Hey!"

Yoru winced. His arm was healed, mostly, but he would be in a lot of pain later. Then he felt like hitting himself.

Was he a wizard or not?

He had read months ago on healing magic, and had memorized the ones for bones.

He took out his wand (which he normally stored in a small hole inside Cheshire's hilt) and cast the spell. Kira had managed to get his arm properly aligned, so he wouldn't have to rebreak it later. His magic responded immediately, since he hadn't used it in a while other than for partial animal transformations.

His breathing evened out as the magic healed the bone perfectly, though it was still sore.

Momo was surprised when she saw her captain moving his arm around. She went to scold him.

"Relax Momo, I fixed it back up. Though it will be sore and more easily broken for at least a week."

Yoru turned his attention to the battles. Apparently the other Espadas were more worried about the one on the throne joining the fight than they were about the soul reapers.

Which begged the question, what sort of power did that guy have to have them so scared?

He knew the perfect place to find out.

"I'm going to sit out of this for about ten minutes. You two catch your breath before you faint," Yoru told them.

Ten minutes wouldn't make much difference, but it would allow them to recover somewhat.

Yoru threw a shield over them, protecting them from surprise attacks.

Ulquiorra was staring down Ichigo's sword. Ichigo had burst in before he could go any farther with the psychological warfare.

Suddenly he felt Yoru appear in his head.

"_I need answers, and you are the only person to give me a straight response."_

'Talk fast, I'm currently fighting Ichigo.'

"_Who is this Espada, and why are the others terrified of him?"_

Ulquiorra was looking at a warped vision of Barragan. He realized Yoru was behind a shield at the time.

'Barragan, the Zero Espada. He joined Aizen out of boredom. His power is Death itself.'

"_Well crap. How bad is it?"_

'He can rot away limbs with a touch.'

"_Which means I would be the only one who would be able to fight him without dying. Great."_

Ulquiorra didn't understand what he meant by that, but he was more concerned with blocking Ichigo.

"_Try not to make his death painful, if you have to kill him."_

'I make no promises.'

"Well crap. It seems the one on the throne is the zero Espada, and he can rot away limbs with a touch when his power is released."

Everyone looked at him. Where did he get that info?

"How do you know that?" asked Momo.

Yoru lied easily.

"Shirosaki is playing the role of one of the fraccion, and they don't know what his released state looks like. He's my inside man," said Yoru.

While Ichigo was certainly easy to identify, Shirosaki's released state wasn't. It was possible that Shirosaki was giving reports to Yoru, since he went into Hueco Mundo at least once a week.

Possible, but highly unlikely.

* * *

Barragan watched the fighting with disinterest. With Aizen out of the picture for the moment, the Espada were following his lead.

It had bothered him when that captain had appeared out of nowhere when he was supposed to be locked in Hueco Mundo with the others. It had surprised him when the boy had turned into a creature any spiritual being feared because of it's highly acidic venom.

But when the boy's arm was only broken in three places and not shattered, he knew he was trouble.

The boy had thrown up a shield which even his fraccion would have difficulty breaking like it was nothing. And those eyes...they looked far too familiar for his taste.

He knew every member of the Espada under Aizen's personal command. And he knew without a doubt the boy was lying. Though his comrades obviously didn't know that.

And his knowledge of his power...

It all pointed to a traitor in their midst. One very close to Barragan and Aizen.

It hit him like a brick.

Ulquiorra Cifer had the exact same shade of eyes as the brat. And he had been gone for days at a time supposedly looking for the strange Espada class that had appeared in the past few months.

He felt the urge to growl. Ulquiorra was the traitor then. There was no other explanation.

Yoru felt something was wrong. Then he looked up at Barragan. Judging by the look in his eyes, he had quickly figured out the truth behind his inside source.

He had to warn Ulquiorra. And fast.

"_We have a problem."_

'What now?'

"_This Barragan you told me about has figured out that you are the inside man."_

'How?'

"_I gave my lieutenant and others the information you gave me, out loud and he put two and two together. I laid the blame on Shirosaki being one of the Fraccion of the others, but apparently he didn't buy it."_

'Good thing I am going to vanish when your brother kills me... _If_ he can kill me, which at this point I am beginning to doubt.'

* * *

_**Gomen! Unfortunately I am still behind on Bleach, so the next chapter will be on the Muramasa arc. Then it will get back to the Winter War.**_

_**Also, if you have any requests for the sequel to Soul Brothers which will take place AFTER the Winter War, feel free to PM me!**_

_**(First chapter is already done, but the sequel is officially in the works.)**_

_Any pairing will have to be decided by popular vote. Right now I am leaning heavily on Hinamori/Yoru and Ichigo/Orihime or Ichigo/Tatsuki._


	20. Chapter 20

"I am guessing everyone else got that weird summons from Yamamoto..." said Yoru dryly.

Normally the old man at least waited until a reasonable hour before dragging their ass out of bed.

Cheshire was still yawning.

It seemed _every_ Squad captain (except Zaraki, who had taken off yesterday to kill hollows in the Rukongai districts) had been called to the execution hill for no apparent reason.

It was only pure luck that he happened to be up finishing paperwork at the time of the summons, or he would have been extremely cranky.

Suddenly the lieutenant of squad one appeared. He looked like hell.

Yoru felt the presence long before the others, and realize the real problem.

A new enemy had shown up to annoy him.

Komamura charged in, much to the surprise of Yoru. He was stopped by someone he had only heard from the canine's sword.

His zanpakuto had just blocked him.

Each of them attempted to use shikai at the very least, but for some reason they refused to respond.

Well, almost all of them did anyway.

Cheshire appeared at Yoru's side, annoyed at the man before them.

"_You can't control me, idiot."_

"He's behind this?"

Cheshire nodded. This Muramasa person just tried to take control of Cheshire through their inner world. Fortunately for Yoru, Cheshire wasn't like the other swords at all.

They all stared when the explosion started. Apparently Muramasa had taken control of _all_ the zanpakuto except for Cheshire.

Ichigo had managed to con his lieutenant into covering for him while he stayed in the world of the living for a few days. So long as there wasn't a captain's meeting, he could skip the paperwork demons that threatened to eat his desk up.

(Yoru had made the mistake of mentioning that joke within Kurotsuchi's hearing, and the man had taken it upon himself to actually create the demons. Rumor had it he would have succeeded if Yamamoto hadn't caught wind at the last minute and used his zanpakuto on the beasts.)

Muramasa seemed annoyed by Cheshire. Possibly because he was the only sword spirit that remained loyal to his master. Clearly he had no idea _why_ that was.

"Cheshire...strike."

"_Gladly. The only one who can command me is Alyss!"_ hissed the cat.

To the shock of the others, Cheshire not only attacked Muramasa, he actually scratched him pretty good before vanishing and reappearing at Yoru's side.

"How interesting. How is it that your zanpakuto remains at your side when the others headed my call?" asked Muramasa, intrigued.

"Because Cheshire isn't my zanpakuto. He only plays the part," said Yoru, amused.

That was news to the other captains.

Muramasa had done what he came to do. He had released the zanpakuto from their former masters and told the soul reapers that they were their own people now.

The only one who dared to defy him was Yoru and his sword, though he had yet to figure out why.

* * *

Unohana was very busy healing those injured in the initial attack. Yoru used his secondary healing bankai repeatedly trying to keep his friends alive. He was the only person who had been at the initial scene that could still use his sword...though revealing that Cheshire had never belonged to him in the first place was a bit of a shock.

Renji and Rukia were concerned about Byakuya, though only Rukia had made it to the world of the living in time. Her sword had very nearly killed her.

Ichigo was concerned about the whole situation. It was only luck that he hadn't been in the soul society at the time of the attack.

Ichigo returned to the Seireitei looking for Rukia. She had gone missing when she learned her brother was nowhere to be found.

Yoru appeared beside him, and for once he looked serious.

"Ichigo...how's Zangetsu?"

"Same as ever."

"Good. Watch out for the one called Muramasa. He has one of the same powers I do."

"Which one?" asked Ichigo with a groan. Anyone who shared even _one_ of his brother's powers always turned out to be major trouble for him.

"He can enter Inner Worlds."

"Crap. Thanks for the warning."

Yoru bounded off, and went to find someone.

* * *

"_Hello Yoru. What happened here?"_ asked Alyss. She had felt something try to take Cheshire from out of her control, and she wanted to know what.

"Someone attacked us and released the zanpakuto from their bonds. Which reminds me..."

Yoru handed her Cheshire, who started to purr in her arms.

"You'll need to keep him close by in case Muramasa tries to control him again."

"_What about you?"_

Yoru grinned.

"I think I'll use my _real_ sword from now on."

Alyss nodded. Cheshire had only been given to Yoru when he first transformed because the boy couldn't handle the powers of his true zanpakuto. Cheshire only helped the boy become accustomed to using massive amounts of power at his own pace.

As soon as the bonds between Cheshire and Yoru were cut (except the ones that bound Cheshire to Yoru as a Chain) a sword materialized.

It was a tachi, a bit longer than Cheshire was.

Yoru grasped his sword firmly. The familiar weight felt right in his hands.

This was the sword that had been buried when he was forcefully reincarnated by the Ouin four hundred years ago. Fortunately he wouldn't have to give up his position as captain, since any true Heir to the Throne had to at least master bankai first.

Especially if the one in question happened to be first in line to inherit.

"Take care, Alyss. Hopefully this mess will be resolved quickly."

A thought came to him that made him grin evilly.

"You know I wonder how Ichigo and the others will react when they see my sword's true form. Think Cheshire can record it for me to watch again later?"

Alyss giggled evilly. She knew his sword's true form. And knew it was going to be hilarious when it came out. At the very least his brother would faint from shock.

Because Yoru's sword...had been separated from it's master over two hundred years ago.

* * *

Muramasa spotted Yoru. He was sticking close to Ichigo Kurosaki. Sode no Shiroyuki had almost been defeated by Rukia, and he had to step in.

Ichigo glared at him, while Yoru looked bored.

Yoru kept pace with his brother, as Muramasa dragged Zangetsu out, despite the sword's objections. Apparently he played on their instinct to fight the enemy.

Too bad for him, Ichigo had another soul inside his body. A soul that went by the name Shirosaki Mamoru.

Zangetsu hit Ichigo hard enough to knock him out. Shiro, who had been inside Ichigo for the past week, took control while Ichigo recovered from the shock.

Muramasa came up from behind Yoru, and noted with interest he had a different sword this time.

So he decided to see if he could force the boy's sword to cooperate this time.

Shirosaki looked when he felt a familiar spirit energy appear. And grinned evilly.

"_So he was stupid enough to bring you out? Funny, I didn't think YOU would be his sword."_

The sword glared at him.

"Bite me, brat."

Yoru definitely had an influence on his zanpakuto, because there was no way he would have said that before.

"Hey Shiro! Mind keeping this guy a secret from Ichigo?"

"_Sure, only if you let me watch his reaction later!"_

Yoru and his zanpakuto smirked. It would be amusing to watch his reaction.

"How interesting. Your sword is a hollow?" said Muramasa.

"Yup. Not just any hollow either," smirked Yoru.

"Is he the idiot who brought me out early? I was taking a nap."

"He's the one."

Faster than he could blink, they heard the clash of steel against steel.

* * *

Ichigo was still unconscious, but he was starting to wake up. Shirosaki was going overboard...and he could sense Yoru's power take a drop. He guessed it had something to do with the vague figure standing behind him.

It looked a little too familiar.

Suddenly he could feel Shirosaki going full hollow. He had to stop him!

He retook control and faced Zangetsu.

Suddenly Muramasa came from behind. He blacked out and woke up again in his inner world.

A world where only he and Shiro inhabited at the moment.

"Show me...your true instinct..." commanded Muramasa.

Ichigo could feel the pain inside his body. The man who had attacked them and took away Zangetsu was trying to rip him apart to find something.

He had a sneaking suspicion the man was looking for Shirosaki.

As quickly as it began, Ichigo found himself on one of the sideways buildings. Shirosaki was standing before him, giving the intruder a smirk that he should have run from.

He wasn't too happy about the man being there either.

Yoru was sitting on the edge, talking to his sword. How he ended up with something that resembled a vampire was beyond him, because he preferred wolves. He wondered how Remus would take the true form of his sword.

He snickered. That might actually be fun to see.

"What's so funny?"

"Just wondering how Remus would like meeting you, considering there are numerous tales of how well vampires and werewolves get along."

"Oh ha ha. Like I asked to become your sword."

"Hey, it's not my fault we were split up two hundred years ago. At least we found each other again before you were killed by that idiot Aizen."

"Point."

The two sat there, and when they felt Ichigo come back to his senses, his sword vanished underneath him.

There was no way they were going to spring _this _surprise on Ichigo until after he got his sword back.

Which took him over two hours to pull off, without using Shirosaki's mask.

* * *

Ichigo stared at his sword, unable to believe he had just beaten Zangetsu with Shirosaki helping. The old man was the calming factor in their soul. Without him around, the two often made really bad decisions in battle.

"_Ichigo..."_

He turned. He could hear the old man's voice again.

Zangetsu saw what Ichigo hadn't during the battle. He decided to have some fun.

"_Ichigo, turn around."_

Ichigo saw his brother, with a smirk that spelled nothing but trouble for him.

"Where's your sword?" he asked.

"Oh, he's around here somewhere. Cheshire went back to his real owner, so I won't have to worry about him popping up."

"What?" asked Ichigo.

He felt a tap on his shoulder, took one look at Yoru's true sword, and fainted from complete shock.

He didn't hear Zangetsu laughing at him.

* * *

"Ichigo. Ichigo!" yelled Yoru.

"Ow... Did I just have a nightmare or something?" he asked. Surely he hadn't seen what he thought he seen.

"It depends. What did you see?"

"Someone Shirosaki took out months ago!"

Yoru started cackling evilly.

"Now why would seeing him surprise you?"

"He's supposed to stay hidden for the next five years, at least!"

Yoru cackled even more. Ichigo's reaction was hysterical!

"Blame Muramasa. Well, him and the Ouin anyway."

"What?"

"Ichigo... When he was split from me, he didn't just take all of my hollow powers away. He took my true sword as well. Over the course of two hundred years, he _became_ my sword."

"So Ulquiorra is...?"

"The name of my real zanpakuto."

Ichigo fainted again. Things had gotten a lot more complicated.

* * *

Ichigo and Yoru ended up checking on Rukia before chasing Muramasa. It helped that Yoru was better at detecting spiritual pressure than his brother.

Without warning they were hit with Senbonzakura's petals.

Ichigo swore.

"Bloody... Stupid Byakuya."

"Hmm?"

"It had to be his sword to block us."

"Can't..._he_...get past them?"

"Ichigo, he only comes out under protest. He doesn't mind me using his sword during battle, but he prefers to sleep. He's spent over two hundred years mostly awake, trying to keep from being eaten. And all those stress filled months did not help."

"Ah."

"Besides... Where's the fun of having him out all the time when I can use him to scare the other soul reapers later?"

Ichigo snickered. Frankly that had been one of his brother's more pleasant pranks.

* * *

Ulquiorra spent most of his time wandering around their inner world. It was one of the most interesting places he had ever been in.

He found the memory of Cheshire's realm, still strong. He didn't care that his true self had bound his power to a Chain to hide his true nature.

Or that the Chain was still linked to Yoru.

Finally, he found something Yoru tried very desperately to hide.

His childhood.

After only a few pages (which displayed themselves like holograms) Ulquiorra shut the book up with disgust. The next time they went to England, the Dursley family would suffer his wrath. There was no excuse for harming a child.

Probably why Nel survived as long as she had with her powers sealed.

Over the past two hundred years, Ulquiorra had never felt at peace. Then again, hollows almost never knew peace. A hollow was forever hungry for the stability it lacked. A hollow was born without it's center, which is why they hid behind a mask.

A hollow... was never truly at peace for long.

But he was no longer a true Hollow anymore. He had found what he had lost so long ago.

He had found the core which he had been separated from two hundred years ago.

He was, dare he say it?

Happy.

Anything that threatened to harm Yoru in any way would have to deal with him. Because Yoru gave him the peace he had thought he would never have.

And he would cross Hell to preserve that feeling.

* * *

Muramasa simply couldn't understand why he failed to get Yoru's sword under his control. He had played on the sword's rather dark feelings and brought it out.

But for some reason Ulquiorra refused to heed his words.

Then again, the zanpakuto didn't feel like any he had encountered before. It was almost...Hollow-like in it's power. Ichigo had the same soul as well, only his wasn't tied to his sword.

He would get Ulquiorra under his power. He could tell that once he did, he would have completed his mission.

Now how to go about it?

* * *

Yoru paused. Something was calling his sword. Even Alyss had decided to skip their usual tea time to keep Cheshire out of this mess.

Then again, Shirosaki was keeping her company at the moment, so he could only speculate what those two were doing.

"Neh, Ichigo. Have you seen Nel?"

"Last I checked, she was with Yachiru and Kenpachi."

Nel and Yachiru had hit it off, like Yoru knew they would. In exchange for keeping Nel away from the sweets (and keeping her brothers away from anything breakable) the soutaicho had allowed Yoru to keep Nel around.

Unfortunately, no one (except Yoru and Ichigo) could have predicted exactly _how_ well Yachiru and Nel would hit it off.

At the moment, Unohana had told both Ichigo and Yoru if she ever caught them giving sweets to Nel or Yachiru again, she would kill them without hesitating. It spoke volumes on the sheer amount of destruction the two caused when Old man Yamamoto informed them that if Unohana did kill them, she wouldn't be punished.

* * *

_**Omake:**_

_Yoru:_ We must perform the most powerful of techniques, Ulquiorra!

_Ulquiorra:_ What technique would that be? I know many powerful techniques, Yoru. Be specific.

_Yoru:_ It is...THE FUSION DANCE!

_Ulquiorra:_ …

_Ulquiorra:_ ...Yoru, lighter half of my soul or not, I'll kill you before that happens.

**Props to Anon42 for coming up with that one! Even I didn't consider that joke!**


End file.
